In the early stages of KKR's chase, it was clear that the slower ball was gripping the surface and stopping on the batsmen, but it was also clear that DC's quicks were frequently offering width to free the arms. With Salt and Narine in the form they were in, it was asking for trouble. The trouble was compounded when Lizaad Williams, who made 23 in the first over, dropped a straightforward chance off Khaleel Ahmed at the start of the second over to remove Salt on 15.
The openers raced to 79 for 0 in the powerplay, with Salt, who did the bulk of the damage, reaching a 26-ball half-century in the sixth over.
Narine fell to Axar's first ball in the seventh over to deep midwicket while attempting to turn and Axar bowled Salt in the ninth with a trademark inward skidder. But KKR's required rate was well below a run a ball, and it remained so even when Williams dismissed Rinku Singh with a good length delivery in the 10th over.
KKR still had a long line of in-form batsmen to come, and in the end, they didn't need Andre Russell, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, or Ramandeep Singh to bat as the two Iyers ticked off the remaining runs with little fuss beyond a mix-up in the 16th over when the game was all but won.