The former IPL Champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), yesterday, thrashed Gujarat Lions by 10 wickets to make an exciting start to their campaign, at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot.

After winning the toss, and asking Gujarat Lions to bat, skipper Gautam Gambhir notched up 76 (not out) during the course, while opener Chris Lynn (93 not out), put on unbeaten 184 runs, for the opening wicket, to cruise to the victory.

Lynn, during his fiery knock, struck six boundaries, and as many as eight sixes, in just 41 balls. Gambhir, on the other hand, was at his subtle best, and scored his runs off 48 deliveries, with the help of 12 fours. Together, they broke the record for the highest successful chase in T20s, without losing a wicket. For his brilliant knock of 93, Lynn was awarded the Man of the Match.

Lynn tormented almost every bowler he faced. He had reserved his best for Dwayne Smith, who he smashed for 23 runs, in the seventh over to reach his half-century in just 19 balls.

However, openers Jason Roy and Brendon McCullum, failed to give a solid start to their team, as Roy was undone by Piyush Chawla (Kolkata Knight Riders) for 14, while McCullum was trapped by Kuldeep Yadav (KKR).

Later, Suresh Raina and Dinesh Karthik, chipped in with a stand of 87 runs for the fourth wicket. Raina smashed another IPL half century, and stayed at the crease till the last ball to score a 68. Karthik on the other hand, looked pretty solid, with his plans, as he took on the KKR bowlers with ease, scoring 47 runs in 25 balls. For KKR, it was Kuldeep Yadav, who bagged two Gujarat wickets, giving away 25 runs.

This was the highest total chased down in T20 cricket with a side having all wickets in hand. This was also KKR’s highest stand for any wicket in the Indian Premier League.

Gujarat will be next playing with the defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), while Kolkata will be up against Mumbai Indians. Both the matches are scheduled to take place on Sunday in Hyderabad and Mumbai respectively. SRH had already registered a win in their first match, while the Mumbai Indians still need to open their account in this season.

Gujarat Lions   Vs   Knight Riders    
183/4 (20)            184/0 (14.5)

Playing for KKR: Gautam Gambhir ©, Robin Uthappa (W), Manish Pandey, Chris Lynn, Yousuf Pathan, Suryakumar Yadav, Chris Woakes, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav, Sunil Narine, Trent Boult.

Playing for GL: Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Jason Roy, Suresh Raina ©, Aaron Finch, Dinesh Karthik (W), Manpreet Gony, Praveen Kumar, Shadab Jakati, Dhawal Kulkarni, Shivil Kaushik.

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By Supraja