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Kochi Tuskers won their third game in a row beating another powerhouse in the Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens in a tight low scoring affair. There were good bowling performances from both sides but Kochi were just a bit more organized than Kolkata. Kochi made another flying start through Brendon McCullum and Mahela Jayawardene, but lost their way thereafter, ending up with just 132 runs on the board. Jayawardene though led his troops very well and restricted Kolkata to 126/9 in their 20 overs to register a third consecutive win. Yusuf Pathan and Shakib Al Hasan picked up 3 wickets each for Kolkata but only Manoj Tiwary got going with the bat scoring 46. Everybody chipped in for Kochi with both bat and ball and another perfect team effort shows just why they have climbed into the upper echelons of the League.

Table toppers Kolkata Knight Riders and Giant Killers Kochi Tuskers met today at the Eden Gardens. Kolkata had gained momentum after a 2 run defeat in their opening game, winning three straight games whereas Kochi after losing two close ones had scaled two of the best teams of the tournament coming into this match.

Gautam Gambhir won the toss for Kolkata Knight Riders and decided to stick with the IPL's only winning formula, that of chasing. Kochi made one change to their side bringing Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan back into the side at the expense of Thisara Perera. Kolkata meanwhile named an unchanged squad.

Brett Lee started proceedings with the wind on his side. Lee and Laxmipathi Balaji kept the attacking duo of Brendon McCullum and Mahela Jayawardene quiet for two overs but McCullum decided that he wasn’t going to sit and wait, smashing 14 runs off Lee's next over, including a monstrous pull that went into the crowd. Spin was brought in to the attack straight away with Iqbal Abdulla being handed the ball. Jayawardene decided to get in on the action and hit two quality boundaries off the spinners. Kolkata would have been disappointed with their start having put Kochi in to bat as they weren’t able to pick up any wicket in the powerplay. Kochi meanwhile powered to 45 at the end of the powerplay.

But Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan was soon called into action and after Jayawardene escaped a close shout, McCullum fell for 23, giving an easy catch to Eoin Morgan. The 50 of the innings came up the following over with Parthiv Patel and Jayawardene at the crease. But the golden arms of Yusuf Pathan got the precious wicket of Jayawardene for 25. Brad Hodge failed to contribute much today, dragging a ball from Pathan onto his stumps, the bowler getting an exceptionally rare wicket maiden.

The slow bowlers were doing it for Kolkata and Pathan made it even tougher for Kochi when he trapped Patel (9) in front of the stumps. Kochi had scored 45 in the first 6 overs but managed just 21 in the next 6 as wickets kept falling. Ravindra Jadeja, who has been finishing matches off for Kochi, had the added responsibility on his shoulders with the top 4 batsmen back in the pavilion. He started off with a mighty six off Balaji to gain some confidence. and soon after plonked a second ball into the stands.

Pathan meanwhile finished his spell conceding just 20 runs and picked up 3 big wickets. Jadeja was magnificent with his hitting as he notched up another six, this time off Shakib. But Shakib’s arm ball was too good for Kedar Jadhav who missed it completely giving the Bangla skipper his second scalp. With 100 runs scored in 15 overs and Jadeja striking it brilliantly, Kochi were still hopeful of a competitive total. Jadeja, who had hit 3 sixes till then, hit his first four when he pulled a bouncer from Lee past the ropes. But Lee had his revenge with a slower ball when Jadeja tried to heave him for another maximum. Jadeja made a splendid 29 off just 18 balls.

Raiphi Gomez and Vinay Kumar didn’t try to do anything fancy and nudged singles around to keep the runs coming. Gomez tried to accelerate in the 19^th over and swept a six which literally went parallel to the ground but Shakib got his third when he rattled Kumar’s stumps as well. An exceptional last over from Balaji concluded the Kochi innings, who managed 132 from their 20 overs. Jayawardene had talked of 130-140 at the toss and there he had a total which they had to defend against a strong batting line-up of the Knight Riders.

Kochi needed early wickets to stay in the game but had no success with their fast bowlers in the first two overs. Jayawardene brought spin on straight away with Jadeja in to the attack. But it was Vinay Kumar who got them the break through when Jacques Kallis perfectly timed a pull shot straight to the man at square leg. Kochi then got just what they needed when RP Singh bowled a brilliant delivery to get rid of Captain Gambhir for just 3. With 2 top batsmen back in the pavilion and Muralitharan still to bowl, it was Kochi who were on top. Manoj Tiwary got some momentum going Kolkata’s way with a massive hit deep in to the crowd but Jadeja rattled Manvinder Bisla’s stumps to strike a third time for Kochi. Kolkata were in trouble at 37 for 3 at the end of the powerplay and needed a partnership to get them closer to the target.

Eoin Morgan, who hadn’t had much of a bat till now in the series, was in next and edged the ball twice in as many deliveries to start his innings. Muralitharan was brought into the attack to weave his magic and his spell was the one which would decide the match. It was difficult for the batsmen to get runs but Morgan ended his struggles with a boundary off Murali. The 50 came up in the 9^th over and a partnership was starting to build between Tiwary and Morgan. The required rate was climbing as Ramesh Powar was supporting Murali very well. Tiwary was trying to bat sensibly, just nudging the ball around. The deadlock was finally broken by Tiwary who slapped Powar high into the stands to give the run rate a lift. It started looking good for Kolkata but Jayawardene’s direct hit found Morgan (10) short of the crease. The pressure started to rocket as the required rate climbed over 8. Tiwary was suddenly struggling to even rotate the strike and Kolkata were left to chase down 56 in the last 6 overs.

A boundary off the first ball of the 15^th over relieved some pressure and Tiwary followed that up with another which eased the required rate a bit. But RP Singh came back brilliantly to take the wicket of Shakib, who scored just 2. Yusuf Pathan came in to bat with a runner and made his intentions clear with a huge six off just his second ball. But his stay at the crease was shortlived as he top edged the next ball he faced and was out for 8 off 3. It was up to Manoj Tiwary to take Kolkata home, however their hopes all but died when he was stumped off a wide delivery for 46.

Brett Lee trying to accelerate perished for the cause. With 26 needed off last 2 overs and 2 wickets left, it was looking hard for Kolkata to come back but Rajat Bhatia struck the first ball of the 19^th over to the boundary to give the crowd some hope. Abdullah struck another boundary in the same over to get them closer. 12 came off the 19^th over and with 14 needed off the last one, the crowd felt a win could still be on the cards. Vinay Kumar was bowling slower ones every ball and though Kolkata picked up a couple of early twos, a boundary so desperately needed never really came, allowing Kochi to close out the game without much ado.

Kochi Tuskers with their third big scalp after Mumbai and Chennai have climbed to third spot in the league table, level on points with Kolkata Knight Riders who stay top despite the loss. Kolkata will be desperate to return to winning ways when they play Royal Challengers Bangalore at home on Friday. Kochi have an additional few days rest before they take on the Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Sunday, 24^th April.

Teams:

Kolkata Knight Riders: JH Kallis, MS Bisla (wk), G Gambhir (c), MK Tiwary, YK Pathan, EJG Morgan, Shakib Al Hasan, Iqbal Abdulla, R Bhatia, B Lee, L Balaji

Kochi Tuskers: BB McCullum, DPMD Jayawardene (c), RA Jadeja, BJ Hodge, KM Jadhav, PA Patel (wk), RV Gomez, R Vinay Kumar, RP Singh, RR Powar, M Muralitharan

Mini Scorecard:

Kochi Tuskers 132/7 in 20 overs (6.6 runs per over)
R Jadeja   29(18)  Y Pathan   3-20
M Jayawardene   25(27)  S Al Hasan   3-28

Kolkata Knight Riders 126/9 in 20 overs (6.3 runs per over)
M Tiwary   46(51)  RP Singh   2-25
M Bisla    16(14)  R Jadeja   2-25

Kochi Tuskers win by 6 runs