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          This time for KKR

          • Nitin SundarJun 1, 2014, 08:35 PM
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              Social media manager Nitin spent his formative years perfecting the art of landing the googly, before blossoming into a book-cricket specialist. More excellence followed in the underarm version of the game before, like the majority of India's misguided youth, he started taking studies seriously. After four forgettable years of electrical engineering, followed by a rigorous MBA and 16 months in the strategy consulting industry, he began to ponder life's more profound issues. Such as the angle made by Brian Lara's bat with the horizontal at the peak of his back-lift. A move to ESPNcricinfo followed and Nitin is now a prolific nurdler in office cricket, with a questionable technique against the short ball.

          IPL final. Almost everyone is watching. Everyone else better be watching.

          Regardless of whether you were watching or not, the noise would have found you.

          And the costumes. Never forget the costumes.

          KKR elected to field, and Kings XI's scoring ticked off with Manan Vohra getting Morne Morkel away through third man for four.

          Virender Sehwag flopped this time around. His innings was not much to write home about.

          That explained it. Punjab threw in a surprise at No. 3, sending in someone who'd not batted at that position all season.

          That didn't work out too well. Sunil Narine knocked him over with his first ball.

          Wickets down, bowlers on top, it was time to go back to the basics. For everyone.

          Wriddhiman Saha and Manan Vohra took their time rebuilding, which meant David Miller and Glenn Maxwell kept waiting in the dug-out.

          Meanwhile, at Roland Garros, it was all over for someone.

          Saha and Vohra turned it on gradually - first against Piyush Chawla and then against Sunil Narine. Both of them brought up 50s as Punjab surged.

          Saha had plundered 60 off 33 balls when Narine dropped a skier to give him a life.

          After a partnership of 129 in 12 overs, Piyush Chawla barely managed to collect a steepler to dismiss Vohra. The ball rebounded off his hands onto his face and he somehow maintained enough composure to complete the catch.

          Saha plundered an eye-popping 100. Maxwell and Miller had nothing to do. KKR were left chasing 200.

          Kolkata's chase got off to a horror start when Robin Uthappa's red-hot streak of form ended in the opening over.

          All going per plan for Punjab then. Where have we seen this before?

          Gautam Gambhir kept counter-punching with a series of early boundaries through the offiside. Not all of them came off the middle.

          Scratch that. They all did.

          Manish Pandey led the fightback, and Yusuf Pathan joined in the run-fest. Kolkata kept pace with the required rate to set up a thrilling finish.

          Pandey was on 60 off 35 balls when Bailey put down a leading edge at cover.

          Yusuf holed out off Karanveer Singh, but Pandey played on like a man possessed, hitting the next ball for a six.

          George Bailey produced a special direct hit for the second time in two game to send back Shakib-Al-Hasan.

          Pandey's magnificent effort ended at 96. Game on?

          Johnson came off with 15 needed off 12, and Suryakumar Yadav promptly holed out. Over to KKR's longish tail.

          Piyush Chawla held his nerve, hooking Johnson for six in the 19th over, and then carving Parvinder Awana through the offside to give KKR the title.

          At the end of the day, did the best team win?

          Ok, at the end of the day, cricket was the winner?

          #Ok.