KKR vs MI | Player Ratings - Andre Russell, Shubman Gill help Kolkata Knight Riders gun down Mumbai Indians by 34 runs

Shubman Gill (8/10): Tipped to be the flag-bearer for India in the future, Gill’s innings was a classic example behind him earning the massive trust of the pundits. There was elegance, there was power, more importantly, he batted with a lot of sense. Gill stroked the ball perfectly from the outset and showed extreme composure even when he was on the cruise mode. His stakes in the KKR dugout have undoubtedly increased after this heroic innings.  

Andre Russell (10/10): It does not take any rocket science to figure out that your best batsman should face most of the deliveries. Russell has been in scintillating form this season and has haunted bowlers with his muscle power and power-hitting. KKR fans couldn’t believe their eyes when Russell walked out to take guard at three at Eden Gardens. This was not a flashy Russell going after the bowlers from the start, he took his time first to churn out the tough runs at the start before going for the kill later. Eventually, the move of elevating Russell bore fruitful results as the Caribbean giant smacked 80 off 40 deliveries to help KKR post a gigantic total of 232. Apart from his exploits with the bat, Russell was KKR’s best bowler too, chipping two wickets for 25 in four overs. Is there anything Russell cannot do? 

Robbie Uthappa (6/10): Uthappa was making a comeback in this game and would have loved to get some runs under his belt on this batting paradise, but it wasn’t to be. The top-order flourish meant Uthappa was kept back the side preferred the muscle power of Russell and Karthik’s slyness at three and four respectively.  

Sunil Narine (4/10): With the stage almost set by the KKR batsmen, all KKR bowlers had to do was dry up the runs and force MI batsmen into doing something foolish. Sunil Narine stuck to his guns and got rid of de Kock to draw the first blood and push MI on the backfoot at the outset. Later, Narine did get the better of Pollard but when Pandya broke the shackles even he wasn’t spared.     

Sandeep Warrier (6/10): With movement available with the new ball, Karthik opted to bowl out Warrier straight up. It was a commendable performance by the Kerala guy in KKR debut where he kept things quiet and banked on his control and movement. Although he bowled when MI were struggling in hot water, his discipline and the heart with which he bowled in powerplay was noteworthy.