The Japan Times - Kolkata survive Parag's six-hitting blitz to clinch IPL thriller

Chasing 207 for victory, Rajasthan slipped to 71-5 in the eighth over when Parag hit 95 off 45 balls and hit six sixes in six successive legal balls -- a first in IPL -- across two overs at Kolkata's Eden Gardens.

The 23-year-old's blitz, which included a wide in between the fourth and fifth six, began with him smacking England spinner Moeen Ali for five sixes in an over. Then, after his partner Shimron Hetmyer took a single, he hit one over the fence off Varun Chakravarthy.

Parag joined an elite list of batters to have hit five sixes in an over in the IPL after Chris Gayle (2012), Rahul Tewatia (2020), Ravindra Jadeja (2021) and Rinku Singh (2023) achieved the feat in earlier editions.

Parag, who is leading the team in the absence of regular skipper Sanju Samson, added 92 with Hetmyer but after their departures Rajasthan finished on 205-8 after a tense last over.

Needing 22 to win in the final over, impact substitute Shubham Dubey, a left-hand batter, hit two sixes and a four off Vaibhav Arora who defended three on the final ball with a run out of Jofra Archer as KKR celebrated.

Kolkata remain in the hunt for the play-offs with their fifth victory in 11 matches. Rajasthan are already out of the final-four race.

The top four teams from the league phase will move into the play-offs.

Andre Russell set up victory for three-time champions Kolkata as he struck form with his unbeaten 57 off 25 balls to steer Kolkata to 206-4.

In reply, Moeen and fellow spinner Chakravarthy took two wickets each to dent the opposition chase as Rajasthan lost half their side in the eighth over.

Fourteen-year-old IPL sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi was the first to go on four for his second successive flop after he became an overnight hero with his 35-ball ton earlier this week.

Moeen struck on his fifth ball in the second over of the chase and soon got the left-handed Yashasvi Jaiswal to dent the chase.

Chakravarthy further rattled the opposition batting with two wickets in three balls including wicketkeeper-batsman Dhruv Jurel and Wanindu Hasaranga -- both out for a duck.

Parag and Hetmyer, who hit 29, then brought Rajasthan back into the contest, but fast bowler Harshit Rana removed both the players in two overs.

Earlier Kolkata's Afghanistan opener Rahmanaullah Gurbaz and Rahane set the pace in their second-wicket partnership of 56 after Sunil Narine's early departure.

Gurbaz, a wicketkeeper-batsman, made 35, and Rahane scored 30 before Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who hit 44, and Russell took stock and then took the attack to the opposition.

Russell, who turned 37 on Tuesday, took his time to get going before he launched an attack as he hit the ball to all parts of the ground.

Player of the match Russell, Raghuvanshi and the left-handed Rinku Singh, who made 19 off six balls, fired as Kolkata managed 85 runs from the last five overs.

Y.Hara--JT