New Delhi: The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) suffered a humiliating & ignominious defeat at the hands of Rajasthan Royals (RR) in last night’s match. The nine-wicket rout not just lowered their morale but also dented their chances of making it to play-off stage. However, number crunching suggests that they are still not out of race and can still make it to knock out stage. How KKR-RR match panned out Nitish Rana-led KKR posted a total of 149 runs on the scoreboard, after being invited to bat first. The two-time IPL champions hoped to restrain the rival team but it turned out to be nightmare for them. RR batters thrashed the KKR bowlers and romped home with 9-wicket victory. RR player Yashasvi Jaiswal’s record-breaking knock of 98 runs in just 47 balls, alongwith Sanju Samon’s 48 runs, dashed all hopes of Knight Riders and pocketed an easy victory in just 13.1 overs. Yashasvi almost broke Yuvraj’s record as he hit half-century in just 14 balls, as against Yuvi’s record of 50 runs in 13 balls. The remarkable victory of Royals over KnightRiders put the former in advance league as they reached Number 3 spot in the IPL points ally. How KKR can qualify for IPL playoffs After the shock defeat, Nitish Rana-led side dropped to Number 7 in the IPL points table and have just 10 points from 12 matches. Shah Rukh Khan-owned franchise still has 2 matches to play against Chennai Super Kings and Lucknow Super Giants. If they beat both these teams by a huge margin, they will still have a chance to quality for the knock stage. However, a lot will depend on other teams also and their performance. By winning both matches, they will 14 points, just enough to find a place in the IPL playoffs. Winning matches with big margin will improve their run-rate and if any team has the same points, the KKR will have an advantage and will thus sail into the playoffs.
