Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders: In the second match of the 19th season of IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders were defeated by Mumbai Indians by 6 wickets. Kolkata team lost even after scoring 220 runs and a major reason for this was the last 21 balls of its innings. You will be surprised to know that Kolkata Knight Riders did not hit a single six on the last 21 balls of the death overs.

Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh kept batting in the death overs but they could not hit a six and as a result KKR's score which could have reached 240 to 250 runs was limited to 220 runs only. KKR somehow missed its hitter Andre Russell, who has now become the power hitting coach of the team.

This is how the match turned in the last 21 balls

In T20 cricket, if your team's run rate is very good, then it is the responsibility of the match finishers to play big shots in the death overs and take the score to a point which is beyond the reach of the opposing team, but KKR team could not do that.

10 sixes were hit in KKR's innings yesterday but not a single six was hit in the last 21 balls of the death overs. Angkrish Raghuvanshi hit the last six in 16.3 overs and after that Rinku Singh played 11 balls and could not hit even a single six. Although Rinku scored unbeaten 33 runs in 21 balls but he could not hit a six in his innings. For KKR in these overs andre russell Used to come and rain sixes. That's just what KKR missed against Mumbai.

It is very difficult to fill the void of Andre Russell.

Rinku is a good batsman but it is difficult for him and batsmen like Ramandeep Singh to fill the gap of Andre Russell as a finisher.

Andre Russell had hit less fours and more sixes in his IPL career. You will be surprised to know that Russell hit 223 sixes in IPL and his fours are only 186. Imagine what impact Russell had in the death overs. Besides, his strike rate was also 174.17. KKR team has lost the first match. The team's batsmen played well but in the last 3 overs the team failed to play big shots, this is a cause of great concern. Going forward he will have to work on this weakness, otherwise despite playing well the matches will continue to slip like this.