IPL 2024: Kolkata Knight Riders' Sunil Narine smashes maiden ...

In his superb innings, Narine hit 11 boundaries and 6 sixes, at a strike rate of 204.08. When Narine eventually was dismissed by Trent Bolt, the opener had racked up an impressive 109 runs off just 56 balls.

In the history of IPL, only three KKR batters have scored centuries -- Brendon McCullum (158*) against Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2008, Sunil Narine (109) against Rajasthan Royals in Kolkata in 2024 and Venkatesh Iyer (104) against Mumbai Indians in Mumbai in 2023.

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An interesting coincidence is that Narine's century came on the same day Venkatesh Iyer scored his century in 2023 against MI. 

Following the century by Narine, Kolkata Knight Riders took to X and wrote, “Playing his tunes to perfection ????"

Even Bollywood superstar and KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan was seen applauding Narine for his century.

Earlier in the day, Rajasthan Royals' skipper Sanju Samson won the toss and decided to bowl first.

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Batting first, KKR have scored 223 runs in 20 overs after losing six wickets.  

For KKR, Sunil Narine (109),  Philip Salt (10), Angkrish Raghuvanshi (30), skipper Shreyas Iyer (11), Andre Russell (13), Venkatesh Iyer (8), Rinku Singh (20*) and Ramandeep Singh (1*) displayed confidence and skill against RR bowling attack.  

For RR, Avesh Khan and Kuldeep Sen took two wickets, while Yuzvendra Chahal and Trent Boult picked one wicket each.

Now, the Rajasthan Royals will have to chase 224 runs at Eden Gardens, which won't be easy considering the hot and humid weather conditions in Kolkata. 

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Published: 16 Apr 2024, 09:08 PM IST