IPL 2023: 'In awe of Rinku Singh!' reacts Twitter after another finishing knock

Lucknow Super Giants survived a late Rinku Singh onslaught to secure a thrilling one-run win and seal their second successive play-offs berth in the Indian Premier League here on Saturday.

Chasing 177 for a win, Rinku threatened to pull off yet another last-over win for KKR with a ruthless 67 not out from 33 balls (6x4, 4x6) as he waged a lone battle. But it was not enough in the end as KKR ended at 175 for 7 to lose the match by one run.

Here are some of the Twitter reactions by imminent cricket personalities

With 12 points from 14 matches, KKR were out of play-offs contention. The left-handed Rinku smashed Naveenul-Haq for three fours and one six in a 20-run penultimate over to bring up his fifty in 27 balls.

KKR needed 21 runs off the last over bowled by Yash Thakur (2/12) but they could score only 19 as Rinku hit two sixes and a four. LSG thus finished third in the table with 17 points from 14 matches, sealing a back-to-back play-offs berth.

It was a target KKR needed to win inside nine overs to go past Royal Challengers Bangalore on net run-rate and keep their slender IPL play-offs hopes alive. In their must-win match, KKR bowlers made all the difference, bowling 49 dot balls which is equivalent to 8.1 overs.

The KKR new ball bowlers set the tempo early on with Harshit Rana giving away just one run in the opening over and returned in his next over to dismiss Karan Sharma inside the powerplay.

De Kock and Mankad, however, managed to keep the run-rate up with 54/1 in the powerplay, taking on Chakravarthy, KKR's best spinner this season.

Just when LSG looked to have found their feet on a dry Eden surface, Arora's twin blow in the seventh over pushed the visitors further.

While Mankad (26) got out trying to go aerial, the LSG's crisis man Marcus Stoinis got an unplayable delivery to be out for a two-ball duck.

Arora got the short ball rise awkwardly and Stoinis had no answer and got his glove to be caught at the slip. At 55/3 in 6.5 overs, LSG had the duo of De Kock and skipper Krunal Pandya to repair the damage but the experienced duo showed little application and got out in successive overs, playing reckless shots.

Narine got Krunal in his first over, while Chakravarthy dismissed the well-set De Kock who played an atrocious slog sweep.

With inputs from PTI