Leading by example, Adam Voges struck an unbeaten 71 to help Perth Scorchers post a respectable 151 for seven in 20 overa against a formidable Kolkata Knight Riders in the Oppo Champions League Twenty20, here today.
Voges' 52-ball knock was laced by 8 fours and a six as KKR ace Sunil Narine (4-31) once again proved his worth for the Indian Premier League champions.
Electing to bat, Perth openers Craig Simmons (39) and Voges, gave the team a perfect start after smashing 68 runs in 9 overs.
The batsmen though got a little help from the fielders as Jacques Kallis (0-39) dropped a caught and bowled chance in the second over to give Voges a life on 2 runs.
The South African medium-pacer got another tough caught and bowled opportunity in the fourth over as Simmons was the beneficiary on 22, this time around.
Simmons got another life on 27 after Suryakumar Yadav dropped a running catch at deep mid-wicket off Piyush Chawla (0-35).
But the left-handed opener could not capitalise on the lives given to him as left-arm chinaman Kuldeep Yadav (3-23) gave KKR their first breakthrough on the last ball of the ninth over after getting Simmons stumped.
Kuldeep once again delivered a punch in the 12th over after getting Mitchell Marsh stumped for 4.
But Voges carried on in the same vein, as KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir kept rotating his bowlers to try and keep the batsmen unsettled.
The aggressive Voges finally got his fifty in the 15th over off Kallis after swiping a boundary past fine leg. The shot also brought Perth's 100 as new bastman Sam Whiteman (21) also started to settle in.
The Voges-Whiteman duo stitched a third-wicket 39-run partnership to improve the teams' run rate, moving into the final overs.
