PBKS’s Chahal levels with Narine for most four-wicket hauls in IPL history

Mullanpur (Punjab) [India], April 16 (ANI): Punjab Kings (PBKS) spinner Yuzvendra Chahal tied with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) legend Sunil Narine for most four-wicket hauls in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Chahal achieved this milestone during his side’s match against KKR at Mullanpur on Tuesday.

During the match, Chahal delivered a game-changing spell of 4/28 in four overs, getting wickets of Ajinkya Rahane, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh that made KKR collapse from 62/2 to 95 all out while chasing 112 runs.

Now, Chahal and Narine both have eight four-wicket hauls in their IPL careers, the most by any bowler. This was Chahal’s third 4-plus wicket haul vs KKR, the most by a bowler against an opponent in the IPL. Notably, Chahal has taken 33 wickets against KKR, the third-most by any bowler against an opponent in the IPL.

In the ongoing IPL season, Chahal has taken six wickets in six matches at an average of 32.50, with an economy rate of 10.26.

He also has toppled T20 heavyweights Mohammed Nabi (369 wickets) and Mohammed Amir (366 wickets) to become the 11th-highest wicket-taker in T20 history. The most wickets by a bowler in T20s are by Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan (638 wickets in 468 matches). Chahal, with 370 wickets in 318 matches, is the leading T20 wicket-taker among Indian bowlers.

Coming to the match, PBKS won the toss and opted to bat first. Priyansh Arya (22 in 12 balls, with three fours and a six) and Prabhsimran Singh (30 in 15 balls, with two fours and three sixes) delivered a fiery start to PBKS with a 39-run stand. However, a powerplay spell by Harshit Rana (3/25) and some fantastic fielding from Ramandeep Singh pushed them to 54/4 at the end of the powerplay. Narine (2/14) and Varun Chakravarthy (2/21) dominated the later stages of the innings, not letting PBKS batters settle, bundling them out for 111 in 15.3 overs.

During the run-chase, PBKS bowlers put up a brilliant fight, with spinner Yuzvendra Chahal (4/28) and Marco Jansen (3/17) delivering spells that turned the match on its head. Despite fighting knocks by Angkrish Raghuvanshi (37 in 28 balls, with five fours and a six) and Andre Russell (17 in 11 balls, with a four and two sixes), KKR was bundled out for 95 in 15.1 overs, losing the match by 16 runs.

PBKS is at the fourth spot, with four wins and two losses, with eight points. KKR is at the sixth spot, with three wins and four losses, giving them six points. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)

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