Kolkata Knight Riders rode on a Robin Uthappa half-century and a disciplined performance from their Sunil Narine-led spin attack to thrash Kings XI Punjab by six wickets in Mohali on Tuesday. KKR needed just 17 overs to chase down a modest target of 139 set by Punjab, who remained at the bottom of the table with their third loss in four games played. KKR, meanwhile, jumped above Gujarat Lions to the top of the table.

Kolkata skipper Gautam Gambhir won the toss and chose to bowl on a wicket that had some grass on it. It turned out to be the right decision as no Punjab batsman apart from Shaun Marsh (56 not out off 41 balls) and opener Murali Vijay (26 off 22 balls) managed to stay in the middle for more than 14 deliveries. The hosts had no answer for Kolkata's four-pronged spin attack, including Narine (2/22), Shakib al Hasan (0/28), Piyush Chawla (1/18) and the part-timer Yusuf Pathan (1/6). But for the final over of the innings, which went for 18 runs, KKR dictated terms throughout.

Kolkata barely blinked in their chase, with openers Uthappa and Gambhir getting them off to a cracking start, scoring 80 runs in the first eight overs. Both of them then lost their wickets in the space of two overs – Uthappa for a 28-ball 53 and Gambhir for a run-a-ball 34 – but it was too little too late for the hosts. KKR got home with three overs to spare, taking them above Gujarat on net run-rate.