KKR thrashed SRH in every department of the game to win their third IPL title in the most comprehensive fashion with an eight-wicket victory in the IPL 2024 final at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday.
KKR's bowlers, led by an incisive Andre Russell with figures of 3-19, followed by the economical spell of 2-14 by Mitchell Starc, and 2-24 by Harshit Rana, folded SRH for a paltry total of 113—the lowest-ever score posted in any IPL final.In response, the KKR batters, led by Venkatesh Iyer's explosive 52 not out from 26 balls, chased down the target in just 10.3 overs, securing their second IPL title win in Chennai.
On a challenging red-soil pitch, SRH's only success came from winning the toss. They never managed to stitch together any decent partnership or momentum, thus culminating in their lowest total ever. Starc and Vaibhav Arora bowled with precision, exploiting good length areas and consistent swing, sending SRH into disarray.
Each KKR bowler claimed at least one wicket, underlining the team's collective bowling strength. Starc set the tone by clean bowling Abhishek Sharma with a delivery that moved sharply away from leg-stump, evoking memories of his heroics in the 2015 Men’s ODI World Cup final. Arora then dismissed Travis Head for a golden duck with a seaming delivery in the next over. Starc continued his onslaught, dismissing Rahul Tripathi with a short cross-seam delivery that resulted in a top edge to mid-wicket.
A brief counter-attack by Aiden Markram and Nitish Kumar Reddy, who struck four quick boundaries, was swiftly curtailed by KKR. Harshit Rana’s clever use of slower balls led to Reddy’s dismissal, and Russell's extra bounce saw Markram pull to long-on. Varun Chakaravarthy and Russell further dismantled SRH, with Shahbaz Ahmed and Abdul Samad falling cheaply, followed by Heinrich Klaasen who played on to his stumps from a slower ball by Harshit.
Captain Pat Cummins top-scored with 24, helping SRH cross the 100-run mark, but he and Jaydev Unadkat fell in quick succession as SRH were bowled out for 113.
In their chase of 114, KKR lost Sunil Narine early, caught at deep mid-wicket off Pat Cummins after a six. Venkatesh Iyer then attacked the bowling with back-to-back sixes over Bhuvneshwar Kumar for 20 runs in the third over itself. Rahmanullah Gurbaz supported him with boundaries through cuts and lofted shots. It meant KKR reached 72/1 at the end of the powerplay—the highest six-over score in the final of the IPL.
Gurbaz continued his onslaught with a sweep and a lofted six off Shahbaz Ahmed, but was eventually trapped lbw by the same bowler. Shreyas Iyer joined the action, reverse-sweeping Shahbaz for four and supporting Venkatesh, who reached his fifty in just 24 balls. Venkatesh fittingly sealed the victory with a single, bringing KKR their third IPL title, affirming their status as the competition's most consistent team.
This win was particularly sweet for Shreyas Iyer, who, after being left out of the Indian Test team and BCCI central contracts earlier this year, lifted the IPL trophy for the first time as captain on his second attempt.
Brief Scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad 113 in 18.3 overs (Pat Cummins 24, Aiden Markram 20; Andre Russell 3-19, Mitchell Starc 2-14) lost to Kolkata Knight Riders 114/2 in 10.3 overs (Venkatesh Iyer 52 not out, Rahmanullah Gurbaz 39; Pat Cummins 1-18, Shahbaz Ahmed 1-22) by eight wickets.
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