NEW DELHI:
Jos Buttler
showcased his prowess with an unbeaten 107 runs, outshining
Sunil Narine
's maiden T20 century, as Rajasthan Royals executed a thrilling joint-record IPL chase against Kolkata Knight Riders, sealing victory off the final ball on Tuesday.
Facing a daunting target of 224 runs, Rajasthan found themselves in trouble at 121-6 by the 13th over.
However, Buttler's masterclass, delivered in a 60-ball blitz, propelled them to victory with two wickets in hand at Kolkata's Eden Gardens.
This remarkable feat saw Rajasthan matching their own record set in 2020, when they successfully chased down 224 runs against Kings XI Punjab in Sharjah.
Buttler, who entered the fray as an impact substitute, reached his second century of the season in just 55 balls, punctuating his achievement with a six off Varun Chakravarthy at the onset of the final over.
Buttler, struggling with cramp, then played out three dot balls before a two and a single on the final delivery ensured Rajasthan held on to top spot in the table with six wins in seven matches.
England's Buttler, who hit nine fours and six sixes, moved ahead of Chris Gayle with seven IPL tons and is only behind Virat Kohli's eight in the T20 tournament.
Buttler built key partnerships including 50 runs with Riyan Parag (34), 57 with Rovman Powell (26) and then an unbeaten 38-run stand with Avesh Khan (0 not out).
Spinners Narine, Chakravarthy and fast bowler Harshit Rana took two wickets each for KKR.
Narine hammered 109 off 56 balls to guide Kolkata, who stay second in the 10-team standings, to 223-6.
Narine put on 85 runs for the second wicket with Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who hit 30, and got together for a 51-run stand with Andre Russell.
Narine, playing his 504th T20 match, reached his ton from 49 balls with a six and a four off Yuzvendra Chahal for Kolkata's third hundred in the IPL as he jumped for joy.
He was finally bowled by a
Trent Boult
yorker before he returned to a standing ovation.
Narine moved into the top three in the batting charts led by Royal Challengers Benguluru's Kohli (361) with 276 runs.
Rinku Singh finished off the innings on a high with his unbeaten nine-ball 20 including a four and two sixes.
(With inputs from AFP)
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