IPL 2021: Andre Russell registers best bowling figures against MI in two-over burst

Andre Russell became only the second bowler to take a five-wicket haul against Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Tuesday.

Russell claimed the milestone during the IPL 2021 game between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and MI at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

The first bowler to take a five-fer against the five-time champions was Harshal Patel, who bagged the record in the opening game of the ongoing tournament. Harshal finished with figures of 5 for 27 in 4 overs and on Tuesday, Russell registered the best-ever figures against MI by picking five wickets for 15 runs in just two overs.

"I have been working very hard behind the scenes, taking the responsibility. There's a possibility of going for runs (in the death over), but there's always a chance to take wickets. I always keep stretching in the field and jogging around, you got to be ready in the 18th over. Bowling against Hardik and Pollard is always a difficult thing, happy we could restrict them. It's always good to get Polly (Pollard) out early, we all know what he can do," Russell said in the innings break during KKR vs MI game in Chennai.

Russell's 5 for 15 were also the best figures recorded by a KKR bowler in the IPL. He pipped his compatriot Sunil Narine's 5 for 19, which the off-spinner had claimed against Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in 2012. Varun Chakravarthy, who bagged 5 for 20 against Delhi Capitals (DC) last season, has the third-best figures for KKR.

It was also Russell's maiden five-wicket haul in the Twenty20s (T20s). Before this, Russell's best bowling figures in the shortest format of the game was 4 for 11.

After losing Quinton de Kock early in the innings on Tuesday, MI's innings was brought back on the track by Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav with their 76-run stand. Yadav scored an excellent half-century before falling to Shakib-Al Hasan in the 11th over. From there on, MI suffered a major collapse and the title holders never managed to recover. They lost as many as seven wickets in the death overs before getting bowled out for 152.

It was the fourth instance of MI losing seven wickets in the death overs and out of which, two have come against KKR.

The last time MI were bowled out after batting first was back in 2014 and that is the testimony of KKR's brilliance effort on Tuesday. Apart from Russell's five wickets, the other scalps went to KKR's Chakravarthy, Shakib, Pat Cummins, and Prasidh Krishna.