DUBAI: Rahul Tripathi hit a six off the penultimate ball Wednesday to see Kolkata Knight Riders to victory over Delhi Capitals and into the Indian Premier League final.
On a night of heartache, Delhi topped the eight team table but failed to reach the final despite a late comeback when they took four Kolkata wickets in 10 balls including England captain Eoin Morgan.
As the chase for Delhi’s 135 for five became increasingly desparate, Tripathi hit the ball over the boundary to lead Kolkata to victory in Sharjah with 135 for seven and just one ball to spare.
The Kolkata players erupted in joy. They were fourth in the table but still reached the final after beating Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore and now Delhi in the playoffs.
“We are delighted to get over the line,” said Morgan.
“We are in the entertainment business and needed to play some entertaining cricket. Six off two and you would say the odds are for the bowling side. But Tripathi has done it for us so many times.”
Morgan said his team would “dissect” the nervy finish before they play three-time champions Chennai Super Kings in the final on Friday.
“It should’ve been a lot easier after the start we got,” he admitted.
Kolkata bowled brilliantly to restrict Delhi’s normally aggressive batting line up.
Varun Chakravarty claimed the key wickets of openers Prithvi Shaw and top scorer Shikhar Dhawan whose 36 off 39 balls gave Delhi a hope of putting up a competitive score.
But Chakravarty who gave away just 26 runs, fellow pacer Lockie Ferguson who also conceded only 26, smothered the Delhi batters.
Marcus Stoinis hit 18 before he was bowled by Shivam Mari and Shimron Hetmyer made 17 off 10 balls, including two lusty sixes, but no one could build the crucial big partnership with Dhawan.
Kolkata seemed to be strolling to victory when Shubman Gill (46) and Venkatesh Iyer (55) put on 96 for the first wicket.
But after they went only Nitish Rana (13) and Tripathi (12) managed to score.
Wicketkeeper Dinesh Khartik, Morgan, Bangladesh star Shakib Al Hasan and Sunil Narine all went for ducks in a dramatic final three overs.
Ravichandran Ashwin took two wickets in consecutive balls in the 20th over but Tripathi hit the winning six on the hat-trick ball to secure the win.
“The win for the team was very important,” said Tripathi. “We had one or two tough overs and I never thought it would go so deep.”
Delhi captain Rishabh Pant fought back tears after the game.
“I don’t have words to express at the moment,” he said.
“We just kept believing and tried to stay in the game as long as possible.
“The bowlers nearly pulled it back, but it’s unfortunate that it didn’t go our way.
“They bowled very well in the middle-overs, we got stuck and couldn’t rotate strike. Delhi Capitals are known to be positive and hopefully we’ll come back better next season.”
Winning five of their last seven games, Kolkata put on an extraordinary resurgence in the second half of the IPL — switched to the United Arab Emirates as a coronavirus precaution — to reach the final.
Morgan said the win had been “a nice insight into our team culture — the young guys coming in feel free to express themselves” and now there are “expectations” around the squad going into the final.
Kolkata Knight Riders win thriller versus Delhi Capitals to reach IPL final
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Kolkata Knight Riders win thriller versus Delhi Capitals to reach IPL final
- Winning five of their last seven games, Kolkata put on an extraordinary resurgence in the second half of the IPL
Son, Kim and Lee tasting success in Europe despite South Korea’s soccer struggles
“I think this will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, something I may never have again,” Son said
SEOUL: South Korea’s national soccer team may be stumbling toward 2026 World Cup qualification and its clubs may have struggled in the Asian Champions League, but three of its biggest stars have been finding success in Europe.
Kim Min-jae helped German giant Bayern Munich lift the Bundesliga title, the 28-year-old defender’s second major prize in Europe after winning the Italian championship with Napoli two years earlier.
While Kim has two European trophies, the biggest star in Korean soccer is Son Heung-min and the 32-year-old forward is yet to win a major title. That could change next week with the Tottenham captain preparing to lead the London-based Spurs in the Europa League final against Premier League rival Manchester United.
“To complete the puzzle, you need every piece. Ultimately, I think, the most important final piece is still missing,” Son, who joined Tottenham in 2015, told South Korea media in London on Monday.
“I think I’ve been chasing that piece for 10 years. I’d love to finish that puzzle this time.”
Son was part of the Tottenham team that lost the 2019 UEFA Champions League final to Liverpool. Now, as the senior player, he’s determined to end what has been a difficult season for club — Tottenham are currently 17th out of 20 teams in the Premier League — and country, on a high.
“I think this will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, something I may never have again,” Son said. “I hope I won’t have regrets afterward. When I return to Korea after the season, I’d like to give my Korean fans and our Tottenham supporters the biggest smile I can bring.”
Son returned to action last weekend after an absence through injury but is set to start against Manchester United. The same is not automatically the case for Lee Kang-in.
The 24-year-old Lee, an attacking midfielder has been struggling for playing time of late for Paris Saint-Germain. He has appeared in 11 UEFA Champions League games this season but was on the bench as the French club beat Arsenal in the semifinals to book a final against Inter Milan on May 31 in Munich.
That game will marks the end of the European season and the start of transfer speculation. Lee has been linked with clubs elsewhere in Europe. So has Kim, whose season at Munich has been affected by injuries.
“I want to keep playing for Munich,” Kim said last month. “There’s no reason why I should leave this team. I like playing for Munich. I want to continue playing for this team next season. It’s one thing that’s important to me right now.”
It remains to be seen where the three biggest stars in Korean football are in August but the focus is currently on winning three prizes in European club football and bringing some good news for fans at home.
Cycling great Wiggins admits cocaine addiction after retiring
- Wiggins, who won the Tour de France in 2012, said he attends regular therapy sessions
- “There were times my son thought I was going to be found dead in the morning“
LONDON: Five-time Olympic champion and Tour de France winner Bradley Wiggins says he became a cocaine addict following his retirement from cycling and is “lucky to be here.”
The British father of two, who quit his addiction a year ago, said his children wanted to put him in rehab, fearing the issue could prove fatal.
Wiggins, who won the Tour de France in 2012, said he attends regular therapy sessions, and feels “a lot more at peace” with himself.
“There were times my son thought I was going to be found dead in the morning,” he told The Observer. “I was a functioning addict. People wouldn’t realize. I was high most of the time for many years.”
He added: “I was walking a tightrope. I realized I had a huge problem. I had to stop. I’m lucky to be here.
“I was a victim of all my own choices, for many years.
“I already had a lot of self-hatred, but I was amplifying it. It was a form of self-harm and self-sabotage. It was not the person I wanted to be. I realized I was hurting a lot of people around me.”
Since ending his career in 2016, Wiggins has spoken about his father’s jealousy and being groomed by a coach as a child.
The 45-year-old, last year declared bankrupt, said disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong, who confessed to doping in 2013, had helped his recovery, including offering to pay for therapy.
“My addiction was a way of easing that pain that I lived with,” said Wiggins, according to Cycling Weekly.
“I’m still figuring a lot of this out but what I have got is a lot more control of myself and my triggers. I’m a lot more at peace with myself now which is a really big thing.”
Tennis Coach Murray and Djokovic part ways ahead of French Open
BENGALURU: Andy Murray will no longer coach 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic, with the pair’s high-profile partnership coming to an end after only six months, the Briton’s team announced on Tuesday.
Djokovic appointed fellow former world number one Murray ahead of this year’s Australian Open and the Serb said at the Qatar Open in February that he would continue working with Murray for an indefinite period.
However, the partnership will now end as Djokovic looks to arrest a dip in form during the clay season by competing in the Geneva Open next week, ahead of his quest for a fourth French Open title when Roland Garros gets underway on May 25.
“Thanks to Novak for the unbelievable opportunity to work together and thanks to his team for all their hard work over the past six months,” Murray said in a statement.
“I wish Novak all the best for the rest of the season.”
Djokovic, who won 25 of his 36 matches against Murray, said he was grateful for his former rival’s hard work and support in their short spell together.
“I really enjoyed deepening our friendship together,” Djokovic added.
Djokovic reached the semi-finals of the Australian Open in January before injury ended his campaign. He made the Miami Open final in March but his bid for a 100th tour-level title ended in a defeat by Jakub Mensik.
The Serb, who turns 38 three days before the year's second Grand Slam begins, has been woefully out of form since that Miami defeat and was beaten in his opening matches at Masters tournaments in Monte Carlo and Madrid last month.
He was expected to jumpstart his clay campaign in Rome before returning to Paris, where he won Olympic gold last year, but skipped the ongoing Italian Open without giving a reason.
Djokovic accepted a wildcard for the May 18-24 Geneva Open.
Cummins and Green set to return for Australia in cricket's World Test Championship final
BRISBANE: Pace bowlers Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood and allrounder Cameron Green have been recalled from injury and young batter Sam Konstas has been retained in Australia’s squad for the World Test Championship final against South Africa next month.
Australia is the defending WTC champion and finished the league stage with an away win over Sri Lanka after a home series victory against India.
“Those series capped a consistent performance across the two-year cycle and now presents us with the incredibly exciting opportunity to defend the World Test Championship,” Australia’s chief selector George Bailey said in a statement Tuesday. “It means a lot to the group to reach the final and they are very much looking forward to the challenge South Africa will present at Lord’s.”
The same squad will head to the Caribbean for a three-test series against the West Indies following the June 11-15 WTC final.
Green hasn't played international cricket since September because of back surgery, but the 25-year-old allrounder is making a graduated return and currently batting at county level in England.
Skipper Cummins missed the two-test series in Sri Lanka with an injured ankle and Hazlewood hasn't played a test since developing a side strain in November, early in the series against India.
Both veteran pacemen have been playing in the Indian Premier League, which was suspended last week because of the border tension between India and Pakistan but is set to resume this weekend.
“We are fortunate and looking forward to having Pat, Josh and Cam back in the squad,” Bailey said.
Opening batter Konstas made an impressive debut against India with a half-century in the Boxing Day test in Melbourne but was dropped ahead of the subsequent tour to Sri Lanka.
Knicks take a 3-1 lead over the Celtics with a 121-113 victory as Tatum is injured in final minutes
NEW YORK: Jalen Brunson had 39 points and 12 assists, and the New York Knicks moved a win away from their first Eastern Conference finals appearance in 25 years and pushed the defending champion Boston Celtics to the brink of elimination with a 121-113 victory Monday night in Game 4.
The Celtics will have to make the NBA’s 14th comeback from a 3-1 deficit to extend their title reign and may have to do it without All-Star Jayson Tatum, who was carried off the court with a right leg injury with 2:58 left.
Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns each added 23 points and OG Anunoby bounced back from two poor performances by scoring 20 for the Knicks, who can win the series Wednesday night at Boston. If not, they would come back to Madison Square Garden to try to do it Friday night.
Tatum scored 42 points, his high in these playoffs, before he was hurt when the Celtics turned the ball over and his leg gave out as he tried to lunge forward toward the loose ball.
The Knicks had taken control just before that in front of a delirious crowd of fans who haven’t seen them play in the conference finals since they lost to Indiana in 2000.
Nobody has come from 3-1 down since Denver did it twice in 2020 at the Walt Disney World resort. It hasn’t happened when a team had to win a true road game since Cleveland rallied past Golden State in the 2016 NBA Finals.
