Twitter Reactions: LSG survive Rinku Singh's onslaught to seal playoff berth

Lucknow Super Giants have officially secured a berth in IPL 2022 playoffs with a thrilling two-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders. The high-scoring contest kept fans on the edge of their seats as momentum was on a rollercoaster ride. It was indeed a heart-breaking defeat for the Knight Riders as they did exceptionally well while chasing a massive total. However, LSG’s total proved to be enough in the end and credit goes to Quinton de Kock’s fiery ton.

Earlier in the game, the coin landed in LSG’s favour and KL Rahul elected to bat first at the Dr DY Patil Sports Academy in Mumbai. As the track was on the slower side, runs weren’t coming quite easy early on. However, once Quinton de Kock and KL Rahul got settled in the crease, there was no one stopping them. The former was brilliant in particular as he played some delightful shots all over the park.

Quinton de Kock unleashed mayhem against KKR bowlers

With the South African international being on a roll, skipper Rahul was happy to play the second fiddle. The duo made an absolute mockery of the KKR bowling attack as Shreyas Iyer looked utterly clueless. From Tim Southee to Sunil Narine, every KKR bowler was taken to the cleaners. As a result, De Kock raced away to his second IPL ton and ended up scoring an unbeaten 140 off just 70 deliveries.

Rahul, on the other hand, scored a well-paced 68*. The duo walked back unbeaten as the Super Giants posted 210/0 in their allotted 20 overs, the highest opening partnership in IPL history. With such a massive target in front, KKR needed a flying start which they couldn’t get.

Mohsin Khan delivered a fine spell with the new ball as both KKR openers Venkatesh Iyer and Abhijeet Tomar perished cheaply. However, the two-time champions weren’t ready to go down without fighting as Nitish Rana and skipper Shreyas steadied the ship. The duo played fearless cricket and added 56 runs for the third wicket.

After Rana’s departure for a quickfire 42, Shreyas found another potent partner in Sam Billings and the duo continued the good work. As Shreyas brought up his third fifty of the season, there was tension in LSG camp. However, the Super Giants again tightened the grip by dismissing both set batters in quick succession.

While things were looking hunky-dory for LSG at this point, there was still a twist left in the tale. Rinku Singh and Sunil Narine continued the six-hitting show as the game went right down to the wire. Rinku was destructive in particular as put KKR on the brink of a stupendous win.

However, a sensational one-handed catch from Evin Lewis meant the southpaw went back for a 15-ball 40. Marcus Stoinis took back-to-back wickets in the final two deliveries of the contest as KKR were restricted to 208/8, losing the game by two runs. As KKR failed to win their last league game of the season, they are officially out of the playoff race.

Meanwhile, let’s look at how Twitter reacted to LSG’s triumph: