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The Gujarat Titians bowlers were having some fun in the middle as they were seen not allowing any KKR batter to settle. But all of them also knew that the match was far from over with Andre Russell still at the crease. The KKR all-rounder had walked out with fortune on his side right from the beginning.
After destroying GT's batting lineup in the last over, Russell also survived a catch out chance off the bowling of Yash Dayal in the 13th over of second innings. On the fourth delivery of the over, the left-arm pacer bowled a brilliant short ball into Russell's body who could only miscue his pull shot into the hands of the fine leg fielder.
But the drama was yet to unfold. As the bowler and Gujarat fielders started to celebrate the wicket, they heard the hooter going off. This was an indication that the bowler had overstepped and the delivery was not a legal one. This lucky survival by Russell was cheered by the KKR fans present on the ground.
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Russell falls short of partners
Despite surviving this close call, Andre Russell could not win it for KKR. He fell short of partners. None of the batters could provide support to Russell. Rinku Singh showed some promise but he also succumbed to the pressure. Apart from Russell and Rinku, no KKR batter showed any courage. Captain Shreyas Iyer departed after scoring a struggling 12 off 15 balls.
Sam Billings and Sunil Narine who were sent to open the innings for KKR, could score 9 runs together. Nitish Rana perished after scoring 2 runs off 7 balls. Venkatesh Iyer also failed to leave an impact and support Russell as he perished while trying to take on Rashid Khan. Umesh Yadav showed some resistance but it did not reap rewards for KKR as Russell himself succumbed to pressure eventually.