| GEO Sports | | Ganguly leads Kolkata to 23-run win over Deccan | Updated at: 1942 PST, Sunday, May 11, 2008
 HYDERABAD: Leading from the front, captain Sourav Ganguly’s all-round effort guided the Kolkata Knight Riders register a comprehensive 23-run victory over the Deccan Challengers in the 32nd Twenty20 match of the Indian Premier League here on Sunday.
First, his captain’s knock of 57-ball 91 helped his team to set a difficult target of 205 runs for the Deccan Chargers and later a fine two-wicket bowling display played an important role in restricting the opponents at 181-7 in the allotted 20 overs.
The Deccan Chargers accepted the challenge and tried to chase the target but the accurate bowling and tight fielding by Ganguly’s men failed them.
However, Venugopal Rao’s unbeaten 71 was a fighting effort but it all came a little too late. Deccan in a sense lost this game in the field with some sloppy displays.
Besides Rao, no other batsman except Rohit Sharma (33) and captain Adam Gilchrist (24) could make any significant score.
Ashok Dinda claimed three wickets for 33 runs and Ganguly captured two for 25 while Umar Gul and Laxmi Shukla took one wicket each.
Earlier, Ganguly chose to bat first after winning the toss at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium and played an aggressive innings of 91 with eleven fours and five sixes.
He and David Hussey together added 102 runs from 48 balls for third wicket partnership. Hussey scored 57 off 29 balls with four boundaries and three sixes and remained not out to see his team reach 204 for four in the allotted 20 overs.
Among other batsmen, opener Salman Butt could score only four runs while Aakash Chopra made 24 and Tatenda Taibu 9. Laxmi Ratan Shukla hit 14 off just three balls and remained not out.
From Deccan Chargers, Chaminda Vaas, Vijaykumar and RP Singh took one wicket each. RP Singh conceded 59 runs in his four overs.
The Deccan Chargers dropped one of their biggest stars who has been a non-performer so far - Shahid Afridi - in favour of Chaminda Vaas, after scoring just 47 in six innings.
Kolkata Knight Riders made one change too as Salman Butt came in for Brad Hodge, who has left the IPL to join the Australian squad in the West Indies.
Deccan Chargers: Adam Gilchrist (captain, wk), Herschelle Gibbs, Scott Styris, Rohit Sharma, Venugopal Rao, Ravi Teja, Sanjay Bangar, Chaminda Vaas, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha, DP Vijaykumar.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Aakash Chopra, Salman Butt, Sourav Ganguly (captain), David Hussey, Tatenda Taibu, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Murali Kartik, Umar Gul, Ishant Sharma, Ashok Dinda. |  |
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