Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) leaped to fifth spot from the bottom of the table after they beat Punjab Kings (PBKS) by five wickets in the Indian Premier League (IPL). PBKS, meanwhile, are down to sixth.
Both teams are level on points with fourth-placed Mumbai Indians but four points behind Royal Challengers Bangalore in third place. KKR's net run rate, however, is significantly higher at -0.305 as compared to the two teams below them -- PBKS (-0.608) and Rajasthan Royals (-0.681).
The top three are locked on eight points with Chennai Super Kings leading the standings due to their higher NRR of +1.612. Second-placed Delhi Capitals have an NRR of +0.334 while RCB have an NRR of +0.096.
After losing four matches in a row, KKR finally pulled off a convincing victory on Monday as they beat PBKS by five wickets in Ahmedabad. The win came on the back of some disciplined bowling from their spinners, which helped restrict the Punjab franchise to 123/9 in 20 overs at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
PBKS upbeat
Punjab Kings (PBKS) fast bowler Chris Jordan said that the team is close to putting in the "perfect performance" and the mood in the camp is upbeat despite their defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders which left them sixth on the Indian Premier League (IPL) table.
"At some point everyone has done a decent job with the ball or the bat. It is just a matter of time before we put it together and see us climbing up the table. The mood at the camp is very upbeat, we are looking forward to playing the next three games here," he said.
Jordan said that the team had been training with wet balls in the net to get used to the high volume of dew that is there in Ahmedabad, which is where they will play their next three games. The England fast bowler said that PBKS lost the match due to the fact they didn't have a good total on board.
They were restricted to 123/9, largely thanks to Jordan's 30 off 18 balls and while they reduced KKR to 17/3 in the first three overs, captain Eoin Morgan's unbeaten 47 helped them win the match with nearly four overs to spare.
