Worried Ravichandran Ashwin not impressed with PBKS' record chase against KKR, makes urgent plea

While the cricketing fraternity enjoyed the run-fest between Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings at the Eden Gardens on Friday (April 26), veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin perhaps did not like it much.

PBKS pulled off a record chase as they chased down 262 runs to get back to winning ways in IPL 2024. In fact, the visitors crossed the finishing line with as many as eight balls remaining in the innings. The Punjab-outfit stayed on top right from the start as their batters took the KKR bowlers to the cleaners.

Match review in short:

Prabhsimran Singh set the tone for the world-record chase by smashing an 18-ball fifty inside the powerplay as he and Jonny Bairstow shared a 93-run stand off just 36 balls for the first wicket. After his departure, Bairstow led the charge with the bat by smashing a 45-ball century. He and Rilee Rossouw shared an 85-run stand for the second wicket before the latter was dismissed by Sunil Narine for 26.

The breakthrough, however, did not bring any respite for KKR as Shashank Singh fired on all cylinders from the word go. Bairstow played the role of the second fiddle after Rossouw's departure as Shashank took charge of the innings. Shashank smashed an unbeaten 68 off just 28 balls with the help of two fours and as many as eight sixes while Bairstow scored 108 off just 48 balls.

Earlier in the game, KKR finished their innings on 261 for 6 in 20 overs after being asked to bat first. Openers Phil Salt and Sunil Narine laid the foundation for the big total by scoring 75 and 71 runs respectively. The likes of Venkatesh Iyer (39), Andre Russell (24) and Shreyas Iyer (28) also played useful cameos for the hosts.

Ravichandran Ashwin reacts to run-fest:

As the KKR and PBKS batters took the bowlers to the cleaners and combined to score more than 550 runs in less than 40 overs, Ravichandran Ashwin made a heartfelt plea. Jumping in the defence of the bowlers who have struggled to contain the batsmen in the ongoing IPL 2024. Ravichandran Ashwin took to X (formerly Twitter) to write a SOS message.

"Save the bowlers" someone plsss," Ravichandran Ashwin wrote in his post followed by a series of SOS emojis.

"It's run a ball for the last 2 overs of a T 20 game in a chase of 260 +. Let that sink in," he added.

“Save the bowlers” someone plsss
🆘🆘🆘 #KKRvsPBKS #IPL2024

— Ashwin 🇮🇳 (@ashwinravi99) April 26, 2024