Kolkata, April 2 Heinrich Klaasen's experienced half-century guided Sunrisers Hyderabad to a victory as they defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by 65 runs in their IPL clash here on Thursday.
Blessing Muzarabani took 4/41, but Klaasen's composed 52 off 35 balls was key to Sunrisers Hyderabad's innings, helping them post a competitive 226/8 after Kolkata Knight Riders opted to bowl.
Chasing the target, Kolkata Knight Riders struggled to find momentum and were all out for 161, losing their second consecutive match after a defeat to Mumbai Indians at Wankhede.
With a strong batting lineup featuring Finn Allen, IPL's most expensive overseas buy Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, and Sunil Narine, the target for Kolkata Knight Riders looked achievable.
However, there was a lack of chemistry in the KKR lineup, as they were dismissed for 161, and their second consecutive defeat.
Even Varun Chakravarthy, KKR's mystery spinner, leaked 25 runs in an over, further contributing to their woes. Narine also went wicketless in his four overs.
For Sunrisers Hyderabad, Jaydev Unadkat took 3/21, including Rahane's wicket, while Ehsan Malinga (2/14) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (2/17) were also effective.
Kolkata Knight Riders' captain Ajinkya Rahane's eight off 10 balls raised concerns about the team's leadership.
Youngster Angkrish Raghuvanshi showed promise with a brisk 52 (29 balls; 6x4, 2x6), but lacked support from the other end.
Kiwi opener Finn Allen, who had scored 100 in the T20 World Cup semifinal against South Africa, started well with 28 (4x4, 2x6) in seven balls.
However, he was caught by Harsh Dubey, and the innings quickly unravelled.
Cameron Green, a star recruit for Kolkata Knight Riders, failed again, being run out for two after a mix-up with Raghuvanshi.
Malinga stopped the ball with his foot, and Green was out.
Raghuvanshi continued to bat, but review showed Green had crossed, and the Aussie had to depart.
The confusion continued.
Raghuvanshi, who scored the most runs for Kolkata Knight Riders, was involved in another mix-up and was run out, summing up Kolkata Knight Riders' plight.
Half the side was back in the pavilion soon after Anukul Roy's dismissal, leaving the chase in tatters.
Vice-captain Rinku Singh offered brief resistance with a 35 off 25 balls, but his dismissal ended any hope.
Klaasen rebuilt the innings with a calm approach, ensuring the run rate remained under control.
Even as boundaries dried up, the experienced South African smartly rotated the strike and ran hard between the wickets, keeping Sunrisers Hyderabad around the 11-run mark.
The duo put on 50 runs in just 36 balls, with Klaasen striking four fours and a six in his composed 52 off 35 deliveries, maintaining the tempo set by their opening duo of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma.
The Sunrisers Hyderabad opening duo raced to an 82-run opening stand in just 34 deliveries, propelling the side to nearly 15 runs per over.
After a shaky start with one off his first four balls, Head unleashed a flurry of strokes, smashing five fours and two sixes in nine deliveries, benefiting from a true Eden surface.
Abhishek initially played second fiddle before taking on Varun Chakravarthy with three fours and a six in a single over, while Kishan kept the pressure on with boundaries.
However, rookie Kartik Tyagi broke the opening stand by removing Head.
Then, a smart move to introduce Muzarabani in the ninth over, combined with sharp fielding from Rinku Singh, triggered the collapse that briefly derailed Sunrisers Hyderabad's charge before Klaasen restored order.
Muzarabani turned the tide with two wickets in three balls, dismissing skipper Ishan Kishan and Abhishek.
Sunrisers Hyderabad suddenly lost momentum, slipping to three wickets for just seven runs.
Kolkata Knight Riders tightened the squeeze further when their sixth bowling option, Anukul Roy, removed Aniket Verma, leaving Sunrisers Hyderabad in need of consolidation.
This responsibility fell on Klaasen, who steadied the innings with a measured approach before shifting gears late.
But Kolkata Knight Riders struck again through Vaibhav Arora, who took two wickets at the death to peg Sunrisers Hyderabad back just when they looked set for a bigger finish.
Muzarabani then cleaned up the tail, dismissing Klaasen and Shivang Kumar in the final over to cap a fine four-wicket haul.