Knight Riders defeats Defending champs

At most times, despite his cavalier approach with the bat, Adam Gilchrist is a conservative man when it comes to taking decisions on the field. So when he opted to field first in the opening game of DLF-IPL 2010, it appeared as if Gilchrist was behaving of character in opting to chase in the tournament opener.

With a full house watching the defending champions Deccan Chargers in action at the DY Patil Stadium, the pressure would have been telling on the defending champions.
And in the end it did prove costly, as Deccan could not hold their nerve in a tense chase going down by 11 runs. The win marked Sourav Ganguly's triumphant return as skipper for his franchise.

But for much of the early part, Kolkata Knight Riders appeared to be behind the task. Comeback man Chaminda Vaas snapped up two wickets in the very first over to rattle Kolkata Knight Riders. Gilchrist was thrilled as he saw his veteran bowler strike and repay the faith posed in him in the absence of first-choice pace bowlers.

For Kolkata Knight Riders it seemed to be a continuation of where they left off in South Africa. They slipped from 0-2 to 31-3 and then 31-4 in the sixth over. At that point, Gilchrist would have been forgiven for believing that his decision was paying off.

But Gilchrist had not accounted for debutant Owais Shah and Angelo Matthews who quietly built up the momentum. From being 57-4 at the end of 10 overs to 161-4 at the end of the full quota of 20 overs, Kolkata Knight Riders staged a massive recovery.
Shah (58 *: 46b, 3x4, 3x6) and Mathews (65*: 46 b, 5x4, 4x6) revived the innings with a breathtaking 130-run unbeaten stand.

Deccan Chargers, in reply, appeared to be on course as Gilchrist led the way with 54 (45b, 3x4, 3x6) and starred in an opening stand with VVS Laxman. But the other batsmen fell to some loose shots, increasing the pressure on the middle and lower-order.

Rohit Sharma was the last hope and any thoughts of him repeating his Houdini act against Kolkata Knight Riders in the second season went up in smoke when he fell cheaply. Still 34 runs away from a win, Deccan never recovered from the Rohit blow.

And in the end Kolkata Knight Riders walked away easy winners with the bowlers, especially the pacers, keeping it tidy all the way.