Opener Bairstow finished the innings with 108 not out off 48 balls, while Shashank Singh scored 68 not out off 28 balls.Prabhsimran Singh, the other opener, contributed 54 off 20 balls to Punjab Kings’ victory.
Punjab Kings smashed 24 sixes at Eden Gardens, following 18 hit by KKR.Shashank Singh reached his half-century in just 23 balls, as he and Bairstow shared an unbeaten partnership of 84 runs off 37 balls.
“When I was in the dug-out, I was just watching the behaviour of the pitch, felt it was coming on nicely with good bounce. Just backed myself to hit the other bowlers, was happy to take the singles and doubles off Narine, we wanted to play him out,” Shashank, who tonked eight sixes in his 26-ball 68 knock, said.
“He has given me complete freedom (on coach Trevor Bayliss), has told me to play the way I can. A big positive when Jonny (Bairstow) supports you (from the other end), he has played 100 Test matches and to see him clap for you, you’ll feel happy and vindicated,” he said.
With this incredible win, Punjab Kings have now jumped to eighth place in the points tally. They have three wins in 9 matches and have 6 points to their name.
“We still have 5 matches to go, we’ll take it one match at a time and I believe that we can still qualify to the playoffs,” a confident Shashank said.