NEW DELHI: Spinner Varun Chakravarthy delivered a stellar performance with bowling figures of 2-17 as Kolkata Knight Riders secured their playoff spot with an 18-run victory over Mumbai Indians in a rain-shortened IPL match.
KKR, currently topping the table, secured their ninth win in 12 matches, becoming the first team to secure a playoff berth.
“I manifested before the game that we’d get through.We were playing fantastic cricket, boys have taken responsibility,” KKR captain Shreyas Iyer said at the post match presentation.

“There have many game-changers. The boys have shown great attitude and it was on display today. I feel the team that plays the best wins, we have a mindset to win from any situation. They were going great after the first six but we were great. Wasn’t thinking about stats or records. Today was a new day and the weather wasn’t great. We did well which is what’s important,” Iyer said.

“(On given Chakravarthy the 4th over and Harshit the final over) I feel which bowler is bowling better on the day is what better. Varun bowled awesome. It was difficult to play his leggies in the nets yesterday. Went with my guts and it came off,” he said.

The Kolkata Knight Riders, two-time champions, set a target of 157-7 with Venkatesh Iyer leading the charge with a blistering 42 off 21 balls at their home ground, Eden Gardens, in a 16-overs-a-side contest.
Despite a strong start from the Mumbai Indians, who raced to 65-0, the KKR bowlers rallied to defend the total.

Chakravarthy, renowned for his mystery spin, secured crucial wickets including that of Rohit Sharma, who contributed 19 runs as an impact substitute, and skipper Hardik Pandya, dismissed for two.

Although the Mumbai Indians were already out of playoff contention, they managed to reach 139-8 with Tilak Varma’s brisk 32 off 17 balls before being dismissed by fast bowler Harshit Rana, who claimed two wickets in the final over.
As the top four teams advance to the playoffs, the final is scheduled for May 26 in Chennai.