Shah Rukh Khan interrupted Andre Russell’s speech, only to give the KKR star a hug.© X (Twitter)
Kolkata Knight Riders co-owner Shah Rukh Khan was in awe of star all-rounder Andre Russell after his match-winning cameo against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their IPL 2024 match on Saturday. Russell smashed an unbeaten 64 off just 25 balls with the help of seven massive sixes and three boundaries. He also picked up two wickets and conceded just 25 runs during his spell, helping KKR beat SRH by 4 runs at the Eden Gardens. He was awarded ‘Man of the Match’ for his exploits.
Shah Rukh Khan was in attendance for the game and witnessed Russell’s carnage from the stands. At the post-match presentation ceremony, the bollywood star interrupted Russell’s speech, only to give the KKR veteran a hug. Russell acknowledged Shah Rukh Khan’s gesture and shared a smile with him after the same.
On Saturday, Russell became the fastest player to hit 200 sixes in the IPL, surpassing compatriot Chris Gayle.
Other than Russell and Gayle, Rohit Sharma (257), AB De Villiers (251), MS Dhoni (239), Virat Kohli (235), David Warner (228), Kieran Pollard (223) and Suresh Raina (203) have also hit 200 or more sixes in the IPL.
Coming back to the match, Russell steered Kolkata to 208-7 with his unbeaten 25-ball 64 and a 81-run stand with Rinku Singh.
SRH started strongly as Mayank Agarwal (32) and Abhishek Sharma (32) put on 60 for the opening wicket before Harshit broke through to send back Agarwal.
Starc created an early chance but wicketkeeper Salt spilled a catch to extend Sharma’s stay, which was finally cut short by Russell’s pace bowling.
Kolkata unleashed their spin force and a wicket each to Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine further dented Hyderabad’s chase until Klaasen decided to unleash his power in a 58-ball stand off 16 ball with Ahmed.
Klaasen and Ahmed took Starc to the cleaners in a 26-run 19th over only for Harshit Rana to turn an unlikely hero.
(With AFP Inputs)
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