KKR's Andre Russell made sure that Gautam Gambhir and Daredevils return empty-handed from Eden.
Delhi Daredevils captain Gautam Gambhir rued the fact that his team wasn't able to execute the plans against Kolkata Knight Riders who condemned his side to a big 71-run loss in an Indian Premier League encounter at the Eden Gardens on Monday. (MATCH SCORECARD)
The result meant Daredevils skipper Gautam Gambhir's 'homecoming' ended on a sour note. It was a much-anticipated homecoming for Gambhir, who had led KKR to twin titles in 2012 and 2014, before the association ended this year. (WATCH KKR VS DD HIGHLIGHTS)
However, KKR's Andre Russell made sure that Gambhir and Daredevils return empty-handed from Eden. Russell's 12-ball 41 headlined the Knight Riders' clinical performance. (FULL IPL 2018 COVERAGE)
Russell's whirlwind 41, 36 of them coming in sixes, ensured KKR overcame a slow start to post a challenging 200 for nine after they were put in by Gambhir.
Spearheaded by Russell and in the company of Nitish Rana (59 off 35 balls), KKR put up a batting show that Delhi did not have any chance, suffering their third defeat from four matches.
Glenn Maxwell (47 from 22 balls) and Rishabh Pant (43 from 26) kept Delhi in the hunt in a 62-run partnership from 32 balls. But the duo of Sunil Narine (3/18) and Kuldeep Yadav (3/32) triggered a collapse as Delhi folded for 129 in 14.2 overs.
Gambhir said Delhi coudn't execute their plans and have a lot of work to do.
"We have to give it to KKR, they played really well. One stage we thought they couldn't get 170-175 but then getting to 200 was a good effort by them. We knew it was going to be a stiff chase as they have three quality spinners.
"I thought we tried our level best but we couldn't execute the plans well. Someone like Russell when he starts to take on the bowlers it's difficult to contain him. We even tried bowling from round the wicket. We had different plans but it was difficult to execute the plans. Lot of balls we bowled into his radar," Gambhir said after the match.
Gambhir's Daredevils will be facing Virat Kohli's Royal Challengers Bangalore in their next IPL encounter at Bengaluru. Gambhir said his unit will look to get a win against RCB to boost their confidence.
"It's important for us to win the games at home, there are about 5 of them we're playing at home. The next game is important for us if we can take a win. If we get a win in Bangalore the confidence will be better. We still have 10 games left and a lot of hard work to do," he said.
