IPL 13: Bowlers come to party as KXIP win low-scoring thriller against SRH

Dubai [UAE], October 24 (ANI): Chris Jordon and Arshdeep Singh starred with the ball in hand as Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) defended a total of 126 to defeat SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) by 12 runs here at the Dubai International Stadium on Saturday.
With this win, KXIP now has 10 points and is placed at the fifth spot in the points table. On the other hand, SRH is in sixth place with 8 points.
Chasing 127, SRH got off to a good start as openers David Warner and Jonny Bairstow put on 52 runs inside the first six overs. Warner was playing in an aggressive manner inside the powerplay overs and he was in no mood to show respite.
However in the seventh over, Ravi Bishnoi provided the much-needed breakthrough to KXIP as he dismissed Warner (35). In the very next over, Murugan Ashwin clean bowled Bairstow (19), reducing SRH to 58/2.
Mohammad Shami then got the wicket of Abdul Samad (7) in the very next over, reducing SRH to 67/3. After conceding 52 runs in the first six overs, KXIP announced a remarkable comeback as in the next six overs, the side gave away just 25 runs and took three wickets.
Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar put up a brief 33-run stand, but tight bowling from KXIP resulted in Pandey's (15) dismissal in the 16th over, with SRH still 27 runs away from the target. In the very next over, Arshdeep Singh sent Shankar (26) back to the pavilion and the match was set for a tense finish.
In the penultimate over, Chris Jordon dismissed Jason Holder (5), and Rashid Khan (0), and SunRisers' chase got derailed from that point. In the end, KXIP walked away with a 12-run victory. For KXIP, Jordon and Arshdeep Singh scalped three wickets each.
Earlier, a spirited bowling performance helped SRH restrict KXIP to 126/7 in the allotted twenty overs.
Sent into bat first, KXIP got off to a steady start as openers KL Rahul and Mandeep Singh put on 37 runs for the first wicket. SRH got the much-needed breakthrough in the fifth over as Sandeep Sharma dismissed Mandeep (17).
Chris Gayle then joined skipper KL Rahul in the middle and the duo mixed caution with aggression to keep the scoreboard ticking for KXIP. The duo added 29 runs, but the stand came to an end in the 10th over as Jason Holder had Gayle (20) caught at long-off, reducing KXIP to 66/2.
Immediately after, Rashid Khan clean-bowled KL Rahul (27) in the 11th over, and KXIP was left in a spot of bother. SunRisers' bowlers maintained their grip on the match as they bowled tight line and length. As a result, Glenn Maxwell (12) and Deepak Hooda (0) also failed to leave a mark and KXIP was reduced to 88/5 in the 15th over.
In the final overs, KXIP was not able to get a launchpad for destructive striking and as a result, the side was restricted to under the 130-run mark. Nicholas Pooran remained unbeaten on 32 for KXIP while Rashid Khan returned with the figures of 2-14 for SRH.
Brief Scores: Kings XI Punjab 126/7 (Nicholas Pooran 32*, KL Rahul 27, Rashid Khan 2-14) defeat SunRisers Hyderabad 114/10 (David Warner 35, Vijay Shankar 26, Chris Jordon 3-17) by 12 runs. (ANI)