No IPL franchise terrorises the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) fans more than the five-time champions, Mumbai Indians (MI). Over the seasons, MI have secured a psychological edge over their rivals from the east that is going to take a lot of mental acrobatics to overcome. Be it the era of Sachin Tendulkar versus Sourav Ganguly or the days when Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir went toe to toe, be it on Indian soil or in West Asia, MI have always had KKR’s number.
The head-to-head details make for traumatic reading if you support KKR. Out of the 29 contests between the two sides, KKR have won only seven, including a run between May 2015 and May 2018 when they lost eight out of eight to MI. Even recent match-ups do not bode well for the men in gold and purple, with KKR winning just one of the last five matches against MI.
No KKR bowler has been more successful against MI than Sunil Narine TT archives
Rohit Sharma, who loves batting at the Eden Gardens, has the highest runs in the fixture with 899, followed by Suryakumar Yadav (428) and Gautam Gambhir (349). In the bowling department, it is once again Sunil Narine who leads the way with 23 scalps to his name, just ahead of Lasith Malinga’s 20 wickets for MI.
Before two of the IPL’s most popular franchises take the field in a rivalry that has historically been a case of one-way traffic, My Kolkata would like to refresh your memories by revisiting three key moments from the KKR-MI encounters over the years.
Unstoppable Russel puts MI to the sword
Andre Russell’s all-round brilliance saw off MI at the Eden in 2019 TT archives
The year 2019 saw Andre Russell reach his zenith with both bat and ball in the IPL. In this game against MI in April 2019 at the Eden Gardens, Russell hammered a 40-ball 80 to help KKR post a mammoth score of 232 for just 2 wickets. Shubman Gill notched up a sparkling 76, while Chris Lynn got a quickfire 54. In the second innings, Russell returned to haunt MI once more, getting rid of Evin Lewis and Suryakumar Yadav. A couple of wickets each for Narine and Harry Gurney kept MI at bay, even though Hardik Pandya produced one of the greatest counter-attacking knocks of the season with a no-holds-barred 91.
KKR’s solitary win against MI at the Wankhede
KKR’s lone win against MI at the Wankhede was blighted by their co-owner Shah Rukh Khan getting into a scuffle with the security personnel at the stadium BCCI
In all the years of IPL, KKR have won just once against MI in the latter’s own backyard of the Wankhede Stadium. That black-swan moment arrived in May 2012 when KKR, batting first, fought their way to 140. On a track with spongy bounce, Manoj Tiwary was KKR’s shining light with the bat, thanks to a gritty 41. MI got off to a decent enough start with Herschelle Gibbs and Sachin Tendulkar navigating the KKR bowling watchfully before the spinners came on. Iqbal Abdulla then trapped Gibbs on his pads, setting the stage for Narine to spin his magic. The Caribbean champion picked up four for 15 in three overs to break the spine of the MI batting. In the end, KKR triumphed comfortably by 32 runs.
Unbelievable last over heroics from MI at Eden
MI's Ambati Rayudu produced one of the most remarkable last-ball finishes to an IPL match against KKR in 2011 BCCI
Batting first against MI on a Super Sunday at the Eden in May 2011, KKR managed a solid total of 175, with Jacques Kallis’s 59 off 42 anchoring the innings. Out to chase under lights with the dew and the outfield in their favour, MI looked in control as long as Tendullkar and Harbhajan Singh, in the role of a pinch hitter, were going strong. But Rajat Bhatia’s three wickets in no time set MI back, leaving a lot to do for their lower middle order. When Lakshmipathy Balaji was handed the ball for the last over, MI needed 21 to win, with James Franklin and Ambati Rayudu at the crease. Franklin briefly turned into Superman, smashing fours off each of the first four deliveries, before Rayudu channelled his inner Javed Miandad to finish the game with a last-ball six. Inevitably, neither Balaji nor KKR were the same for the rest of the season.
