Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals both are at the brink. They can’t afford to lose any matches otherwise they would be out of the top 4 race. But then when you meet each other – one has to win and one has to lose. Whoever loses goes out of the tournament. IPL 2020 has panned out in such a fashion that the middle portion of the table is completely clogged and few teams are all jostling among themselves for the 4th spot. One of these 2 teams had to lose when they met each other in Dubai yesterday. I expected a close encounter.

So how did it go?

Here are my 5 points highlights from yesterday’s match.

1. Sanju Samson

After a great start to the season, Sanju Samson like the previous years just fretted away. Unnecessary risky shots and before anyone knew it – he lost his form. It’s the same story always with this highly talented cricketer. With so much competition around for the wicketkeeper slot – one should always have a high price tag against his wicket but letting go of such opportunities is costing him, dear. Yesterday he came in at one drop and with Ben Stokes struggling – he took the onus on himself to keep the scoreboard moving. To his credit, he was successful to a certain extent. He built a partnership with Ben Stokes but too much adventurism led to the downfall and he got out after scoring 36 which came off just 26 balls. He was the highest scorer for Rajasthan but if he had batted till the end Rajasthan Royals would have scored much more than what they finally ended up with.

2. Jason Holder

Sunrisers Hyderabad was without the services of Kane Williamson who got injured in the last match. They did a smart swap by bringing in Jason Holder who is now a genuine allrounder in Test Cricket. Holder’s bowling has also improved over the past few years and though he is not fast – his line and lengths are good and he always gets a good bounce from any wicket due to his height. Yesterday he opened the bowling and also bowled towards death overs. He made a great impact in the match by returning figures of 3/33 in the 4 overs he bowled. His scalps included Sanju Samson and Steven Smith and he played a big role in keeping the Rajasthan Royals score below par.

3. Vijay Shankar

Vijay Shankar had created a lot of furor in Indian cricket circles when he was preferred over Ambati Rayudu for the Cricket World Cup. He is a genuine batsman and a goodish medium pace bowler. An allrounder was what India was looking for and that’s why he got the nod. But he never did justice to his selection. As a batsman, he has never put the field on fire and other than one match against Australia is bowling has generally have had no effect. Yesterday he bowled well (to his credit he bowled well against KKR too). His figures of 1/15 in 3 overs was a pretty good return especially when he took the wicket of Jos Buttler. With the bat, he came in when the team’s score was 16 in the third over with Jofra Archer breathing fire. But, he held on and took his time to settle in and played a good steady hand, and built a match-winning partnership with Manish Pandey. Scoring a half-century in a winning cause must give him a lot of satisfaction.

4. Jofra Archer

You can’t keep Jofra Archer out of the game, can you? Rajasthan Royals first off all didn’t score much and when Archer came into bat the scoreboard read 135/6 with 10 balls in hand. He played 7 off those 10 balls and scored a vital 16 runs. Though in the final equation it didn’t matter much at least he had some extra runs to defend for himself. With the ball, he was breathing fire right away. Both the openers – Warner and Bairstow were sent back to the pavilion in the first two overs. His figures after 2 overs read 2/5. Rajasthan Royals had a great chance if only they could go past Manish Pandey. And here Smith missed a trick and didn’t give Archer the third over. This turned out to be a costly mistake because by the time he came back to bowl both the batsmen had got their eye in.

5. Manish Pandey

Manish Pandey had a very important role to play yesterday because Kane Williamson was not playing. It became even more important when Sunrisers Hyderabad lost 2 wickets within the powerplay. A wicket at that stage would have exposed the brittle middle order of the team. But Manish Pandey was in his zone yesterday. He didn’t let go of his aggression and with Shankar, he got great support who held up one end. They never let the run rate to creep up because a boundary was hit every over and the target was always in sight. He scored 83 of 47 balls which included 8 sixes. Manish Pandey had not been scoring a lot of runs this season and this innings would give a lot of hope to Sunrisers Hyderabad who needs him to perform if they have to reach the top 4.

So finally an easy victory for Sunrisers Hyderabad and it takes them to the 5th position in the table.

For Rajasthan Royals, the campaign is virtually over and that’s pretty sad because they are always emotional favourites due to season 1 of IPL in 2008.

What do you think went wrong for Rajasthan Royals yesterday? Should they have given one moreover to Jofra Archer?

Do share your thoughts.

Today is Maha Saptami. Bathing of the navapatrika with holy water is done today to begin the Durga Puja rituals.

As we pay our respects to Maa Durga (symbol of Stree Shakti) – I pay my homage to another Bengali braveheart as part of my Stree Shakti series.

Today I am going to talk about Sucheta Kriplani (born Sucheta Majumdar).

Sucheta Kriplani (nee Majumdar)

Sucheta was born on 25th June 1908 in a Bengali Brahmo Family in Ambala. As a kid, she was highly influenced by hearing the stories of British atrocities. The incident that moved her the most was the Jalianwala Bagh Massacre.

As a student, her Bible class teacher once said some disparaging things about Hinduism. Furious, Sucheta and her sister went home and asked their father to help them out. He coached them on some religious teachings and, the next day, the girls confronted their teacher with quotes from the Bhagavad Gita. The teacher never referred to Hinduism in the class ever again!

She was a bright student and received her Master’s degree in History from St. Stephen’s College in Delhi. She joined Benaras Hindu University as a history professor thereafter.

Her patriotic feelings got her to join the Indian Freedom movement soon. She married Acharya Kriplani who was the then General Secretary of the Indian National Congress. Sucheta worked very closely with Mahatma Gandhi and he wrote on her as well – “a person of rare courage and character who brought credit to Indian womanhood“.

She was at the forefront of the Quit India Movement and also accompanied Gandhi Ji to Noakhali during the partition-infused riots. 

She was part of the subcommittee that laid down the charter for the Constitution of India.

But Sucheta’s crowning moment came on 14th August 1947, not because freedom was finally here but because she played a significant role in delivering it to the people of India. She opened the independence session of parliament by singing Vande Mataram (our National Song) and concluded it by reciting Saare Jahan Se Accha and the Jana Gana Mana (Our National Anthem).

After independence, she played her part in politics and was the first woman Chief Minister in India when she led the Uttar Pradesh Government from 1963-67.

She quit politics in 1971 and started writing her autobiography which unfortunately remained unfinished due to her health and she finally passed away in 1974.

Let’s salute another Great Lady who chartered her own course from teaching history to making history.

Stay Safe Everyone. 

 May Maa Durga bless us all.

 The 6th Part of this Seven Part Series will release tomorrow where we will discuss another firebrand Bengali lady who left an indelible mark in Indian history.

Royal Challengers Bangalore have always underperformed as a team in IPL. They always had a great top-order but sometimes the weak middle order or a weak bowling outfit ensured that they never got a string of wins which is so important to win the tournament. Finally this year they got their line up corrected but then their selection for the first XI was skewed up. Things changed dramatically with Washington Sundar coming good and timely entry of Chris Morris.

Kolkata Knight Riders on the other hand are having a strange season. On paper, they have one of the weakest team and to that none of their foreign recruits are yet to come good. They have still found ways to win matches. They are at the 4th spot but with Kings XI Punjab breathing on their neck, it was important that they won against RCB when they met them at Abu Dhabi yesterday.

So how did it go?

Here are the high points from the match yesterday.

1. KKR top-order collapse

Kolkata Knight Riders won the toss and decided to bat first. But all hell broke loose from the second over onwards. In a space of 12 balls, 4 batsmen were back in the pavilion and the innings lay in shatters. The scoreboard read 4/14 in the 4th over and KKR never recovered from that. You need quality batting technique to overcome genuine swing and KKR was found wanting with everyone getting out due to adventurous drives. Gill on his part has no control while facing short balls pitched outside the off-stump and this was the third time in IPL he got out to such a stroke. 

2. Md. Siraj 

Siraj was one of the worst economy rates in IPL. He bowls genuine quick balls but due to the length that he bowls he generally goes for a lot of runs. Yesterday was very different because he was pitching right at the spot from where the ball was swinging excessively. While Tripathi got out due to an expansive drive, Nitish Rana got a delivery which the best of the batsmen might have struggled. His figures after his first 2 overs read 3/0 – you read it right – that’s 3 wickets without a run conceded. 2 maiden overs in a row is a record in IPL. Yesterday a record was created in batting when Shikhar Dhawan scored two consecutive centuries and today we had 2 consecutive maiden overs. It felt like watching a test match with lots of misses by all batsmen as Siraj and his fellow bowlers made the ball talk. He finally ended with 3/8 in 4 overs. 

3. Maidens in the match

Bowling a maiden over in a T20 match is a great achievement – yesterday we had 4 maiden overs bowled by the RCB bowlers. Two of them were bowled by Md. Siraj and the other two maiden overs were bowled by Chris Morris and Washington Sundar. When you bowl so many dot balls – it invariably means a sorry state for the batting team. That KKR didn’t get bowled out was an achievement in itself which was only possible due to the 9th wicket partnership between Kuldeep Yadav and Lockie Ferguson.

4. Yuzvendra Chahal

When the pace bowlers make inroads in the top order, it becomes easier for the spinners. We found the old guile of Chahal playing out yesterday. He kept fighting the ball and invited the batsmen to hit but because of the flight and the subsequent turn, it was not possible. Here is one leg spinner who invites you to hit and subsequently takes wickets. The classical leg spinner I must say. His figures of 2/15 in 4 overs was a job well done by Yuzvendra Chahal.

5. Walk in the park for RCB

With only 85 to chase, it was expected to be a walk in the park for RCB. KKR’s only hope was if they could pick up some early wickets. Quite inexplicably the best bowler in the last match – Lockie Ferguson was not brought on in the power play. RCB went about their job professionally and almost 50% of the runs were scored within the first 6 overs. Lockie came to bowl in the 7th over and immediately removed Aaron Finch and then Devdutt Padikkal got himself run out. He was the only bowler from KKR who looked dangerous and finished with 1/17 in 4 overs. Virat Kohli and Gurkeerat Singh didn’t allow pressure to build up and finished the match in 14th over.

A big win for RCB which helped them to reach the 2nd spot in the table. This win also helped them in their Net Run Rate.

But where does KKR goes from here? None of their batsmen seems to be in form and it would be extremely difficult for them to keep their place in the Top 4.

What do you think?

Today is Maha Sasthi. Today we welcome Maa Durga to the mortal world.  As part of my seven-part series to celebrate the Stree Shakti, today – the 4th day of my series – I bring to you the story of another Indian Freedom Fighter – Pritilata Wadedar who gave up her life at a very young age fighting for her motherland.

Pritilata Wadedar

Pritilata Wadedar was born on 5th May 1911 in Chittagong. She was a meritorious student and stood first in her Intermediate Exams (Plus 2). In pursue of higher studies she came to Calcutta and got herself enrolled at Bethune College. In Calcutta, she enrolled herself at Chhatri Sangha (a semi-revolutionary organization that trained young ladies in using arms and ammunition) where Bina Das was also part of. 

After her graduation (she never received the degree because the British withheld it due to her proximity with Bina Das – both she and Bina Das got their certificates posthumously in 2012) she traveled back to Chittagong and joined the revolutionary group of Master Da Surya Sen.

Master Da planned to attack the Pahartali European Club which had a signboard that read “Dogs and Indians not allowed”. Kalpana Dutta was given charge of the attack. But she got arrested seven days before the attack. Pritilata was then given the job to lead the group. On 24th September 1932, a group of 8 revolutionaries headed by Pritilata Wadedar went to the club and put it on fire. After the initial daze, the British retaliated and after an intense chase, Pritilata and her group were surrounded.

Realizing that there was no route to escape she thought of a plan that would help her fellow members to escape and she created a diversion for them. Then remaining true to her love for her country she swallowed a cyanide pill and committed suicide, rather than allowing herself to be captured by the British forces. She was only 21 when she chose death for her country. 

As we celebrate Stree Shakti this week, let’s remember this braveheart who sacrificed her life at the age of 21 for our freedom.

Stay Safe Everyone. 

 May Maa Durga bless us all.

 The 5th Part of this Seven Part Series will release tomorrow where we will discuss another firebrand Bengali lady who left an indelible mark in Indian history.

The first part of this series was released on 19th October and you can read it here: https://souravsinha.com/2020/10/18/durga-puja-special-stree-shakti-begum-rokeya/
The second part of this series was released on 20th October and you can read it here: https://souravsinha.com/2020/10/20/durga-puja-special-stree-shakti-bina-das/
The third part of this series was released on 21st October and you can read it here: https://souravsinha.com/2020/10/20/durga-puja-special-stree-shakti-kalpana-dutta/

After the high adrenaline match on Sunday, Kings XI Punjab has been flying high. And why wouldn’t they? They beat RCB a couple of days earlier and after beating Mumbai Indians, their confidence was sky high because they had beaten two top-ranked sides. Yesterday when Kings XI Punjab met the table toppers, Delhi Capitals, they had every reason to believe that they can beat them because the last time when these two teams met it was a tie. So how did it go?

Here are my 5 points highlights of yesterday’s match held in Dubai.

1. Shikhar Dhawan

Dhawan has hit a purple patch. He was in very ordinary form in the first 6 matches. Then he hit a half-century carrying his bat through – a very slowish half-century but that innings changed everything for Shikhar Dhawan. From that day onwards he has not put a foot wrong. In the last match against CSK, he scored an unbeaten century to take Delhi Capitals to the top of the table. Sometimes lightning strikes twice and that’s what exactly happened yesterday because for the first time in IPL history we had a batsman who hit two centuries in a row. Dhawan remained not out too so basically he has now been batting for 40 overs (scoring 2 centuries) and is yet to get out. Quite an achievement in T20 cricket. Yesterday he faced 61 balls and scored 106 runs. The rest of the Delhi Capitals team faced 59 balls and scored 58 runs. The next highest scorer in his team was 14 runs. A huge gap that cost Delhi Capitals dearly because 164 was not a winning total. It was one of those rare matches where a player from the losing team won the Man of the Match award – that’s the kind of gulf that Dhawan created among all players in the field yesterday.

2. Md. Shami

Shami is one of the top 5 pace bowlers in world cricket today. He always had the pace but what he lacked was consistency and he also lacked yorkers. He was way too focused on the length earlier in his career. But the last 2 years have been a revelation for him and his performance shows in the same. He has got extremely fit and he now has the ability to bowl 6 yorkers in 6 balls. He showed his skills to the whole world when he defended 5 runs in the super over against Mumbai Indians. Yesterday with Dhawan going great guns it was important that Kings XI Punjab don’t leak too many runs in the death. Shami didn’t miss the length even once and that was the primary reason why Delhi Capitals was kept at 164 runs only. His figures read 2/28 in 4 overs. The wickets of Stoinis and Hetmeyer in the death overs didn’t allow Delhi Capitals to get any momentum.

3. Kagiso Rabada

Rabada is the top bowler this IPL and he takes a wicket in each and every match. He doesn’t go wicketless and that’s something which has held Delhi Capitals in good stead. Yesterday Nortje didn’t take the field and hence Rabada had extra pressure. 164 was not a winning total and hence Rabada’s performance was very important and they needed him to pick up quick wickets. He couldn’t give them the breakthrough but he didn’t leak runs either. He did create a flutter by picking up the wickets of Pooran and Maxwell though and finished with 2/27 in 4 overs which was a very good performance.

4. Glenn Maxwell

Maxwell has never performed to his potential in IPL. This year has been no different. He always got out in the most inopportune moments and is yet to play a defining inning to take the team home. Rahul did a smart thing in bowling him because sometimes these players need to do something for the team to get their adrenaline flowing. Though he is yet to put the stage on fire he has kept things tight. He is now generally opening the bowling for Kings XI Punjab and it has now started to click. Yesterday he bowled his quota of 4 overs and returned with figures of 1/31 which was not bad for a part-time spinner. This confidence worked well when he came to bat. Kings XI got themselves into a bit of a hole with quick wickets and was reeling at 56/3. To their advantage though the run rate was good and that allowed Maxwell to not go after the bowling and he played himself in without taking undue risks. His running between the wickets was a bit dodgy though. He scored 32 off 24 balls and took his team to the doorsteps of victory. A good day at the office for Glenn Maxwell.

5. Nicholas Pooran

I have said this earlier and I am saying this again – Pooran is the best batsman to come out of West Indies after Brian Lara. His stance, his front foot play, and his back foot play all remind you about the great West Indians of the past. He is a hybrid of Richards and Lara and I expect some great things from him in the future. Yesterday he came in at the fall of Chris Gayle’s wicket. Chris Gayle had hit 26 off 10 balls to keep the asking run rate at very manageable levels. But a cardinal calling mistake got Mayank Agarwal run out and that spurred on Pooran. He was in a different zone thereafter and all bowlers were hit around the park. You could see the anger writhed on his face as he batted on. 53 off 28 balls is what he scored yesterday and by the time he got out the asking run rate was below 5 runs an over.

Kings XI Punjab is on the rise and now is breathing down the neck of KKR for the 4th spot. They have now beaten the top 3 sides in the tournament in 3 consecutive games and the entry of Chris Gayle has done wonders for the team.

So will Kings XI Punjab make it to the playoffs? What do you think?

Do share your views!

As part of my seven-part series to celebrate the women’s spirit, today I bring to you the story of another Indian Freedom Fighter – Kalpana Dutta.

Kalpana Dutta

Kalpana Dutta was born on 27th August 1913 in the Chittagong District (which is now a part of Bangladesh). For her graduation, she came to Calcutta, and there she joined Chhatri Sangha – a revolutionary organisation that used to train young girls in arms and ammunition.

She joined the revolutionary group led by Surya Sen in 1931 and was entrusted with a role to attack the Pahartali European Club. But she was arrested while recceing the area. She got bail and promptly went underground. On 17th February 1933 the police found out the hiding place of the revolutionaries and Surya Sen was arrested but once again Kalpana Dutta was able to escape. She was finally caught in September and was jailed.

She was released in 1939 after which she joined the communist party and immersed herself in social work and relief activities during the Bengal famine in 1943 and the partition of 1947.

She married Puran Chand Joshi in 1943 who was at that time the General Secretary of the Communist Party of India. She wrote a book on the Chittagong Armoury Raid: “Chittagong Armoury Raiders: Reminiscences”.

Her daughter-in-law, Manini Chatterjee wrote a book called “Do and Die: The Chattagram Uprising” which was later adapted as a movie called “Khele hum Jee Jaan Se” – Deepika Padukone played the character of Kalpana Dutta.

Later on, Kalpana Dutta joined Indian Statistical Insititute and worked there till her retirement. She passed away on 8th February 1995 in Calcutta.

As we celebrate Stree Shakti this week, let’s remember this firebrand lady whom Master Da Surya Sen fondly called “Agni Kanya”.

Stay Safe Everyone. Let’s celebrate Durga Puja from home.

 May Maa Durga bless us all.

 The 4th Part of this Seven Part Series will release tomorrow where we will discuss another firebrand Bengali lady who left an indelible mark in Indian history.

The first part of the Stree Shakti series can be read here: https://souravsinha.com/2020/10/18/durga-puja-special-stree-shakti-begum-rokeya/ and the second part can be read here: https://souravsinha.com/2020/10/20/durga-puja-special-stree-shakti-bina-das/

All the bottom 4 teams are tied together at 6 points and we have reached a state from where any loss for any of these teams would lead to an end to their IPL hopes for the season. Under this context, Rajasthan Royals met Chennai Superkings in Abu Dhabi yesterday. Both the teams needed to win and that built up the expectation of a tight contest. So how did it go?

Here are my 5 points highlights of yesterday’s match.

1. Jofra Archer

When you have Archer on your side you have an insurance cover of 4 overs. Especially for a team like Rajasthan Royals who do not have any other real quick bowler in the side. He generally gives you breakthroughs and if he can’t he won’t go for runs. Yesterday was no different and in his second over he picked up the wicket of Faf Du Plessis – the only consistent batsman for CSK this season. He then came back at the death and didn’t provide a single delivery which could be hit. Jofra Archer has bowled 120 dot balls this season so far. No wonder he is one of the best pace bowlers in the world today. His fielding yesterday was quite comical though but as luck would have it – he affected a run out even with a misfield.

2. Shreyas Gopal 

Shreyas Gopal is one of those players who will perform consistently day in and day out. Multiple times while playing Ranji Trophy he has bailed out Karnataka with either bat or ball. That he doesn’t take a bucket of wickets has gone against him and he has been ignored in selection meetings. Very few leg spinners are comfortable to bowl in the powerplays but Gopal does it consistently for Rajasthan Royals. Leg Spinners are known for getting hit and taking wickets but it’s not so easy to hit Gopal out of the park because of the length that he bowls. Yesterday he had a stranglehold on the CSK batsmen and returned with figures of 1/14 in his 4 overs. A job well done, I must say.

3. Rahul Tewatia

Rahul Tewatia’s stocks have been on the rise in this year’s IPL. He was drafted into the side as a bowling allrounder but he became a household name due to his death over batting heroics. Cricket is a game of confidence – with the confidence garnered in batting his bowling improved as well. Now he is regularly bowling his quota of 4 overs. Yesterday he bowled like a regular leg spinner and didn’t allow the batsmen to break free. In tandem with Gopal, he kept things tight. 1/18 in 4 overs amplifies this fact. The number 7 in the Rajasthan Royals line up is locked up now with Rahul Tewatia.

4. Deepak Chahar

Deepak Chahar is one of the best swing bowlers in India today. Invariably he will make the ball talk early in the innings. Yesterday with a very small score to defend, CSK needed him to perform exceedingly well. And he delivered. 2/18 in 4 overs with one maiden put the breaks on the Rajasthan Royals chase. His performance made me feel that we might have a close contest but unfortunately, no other bowler supported him other than Hazlewood, and Rajasthan Royals ran away with the match.

5. Jos Buttler

It was 28/3 in the 5th over when Jos Buttler came to the crease. It didn’t look very good for Rajasthan but Steve Smith and Jos Buttler are class players. Steve Smith struggled but Jos Buttler played like the way he can. He was circumspect initially but he got into his zone soon. 70 off 48 balls in a chase of 126 shows the difference between him and the other players. CSK had no answers to his batting yesterday and Rajasthan Royals won with 15 balls to spare.

Yesterday’s loss ensured that for the first time, CSK won’t make the playoffs. Time to rebuild the team from scratch I should say. They need younger and fitter players in the team. Dhoni’s swan song has not been a pleasant one.

What do you think should CSK do from here on? Can Rajasthan Royals make the playoffs?

Please do share your views.

As part of my seven-part series to celebrate the women’s spirit of Bengal, today I bring to you the story of a little known Indian Freedom Fighter – Bina Das – another “Bengali Agni Kanya”.

Bina Das

Born on 21st August 1911, Bina Das was a part of Chhatri Sangha – a revolutionary organisation for women which taught young college students how to use arms and ammunition. 

On 6th February 1932, a 21-year student from Bethune College, Bina Das walked into the Calcutta University during a convocation program and fired shots at the then, Governor Stanley Jackson. 

(For cricket fans, Stanley Jackson was a cricketer and played for England and was an Ashes-winning captain).

Bina Das missed her target and was caught & subsequently jailed for 9 years. After getting her release she joined the Quit India movement and was jailed again for 3 years.

She was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1960.

Unfortunately for India, this firebrand revolutionary died an ignominious death.

Her dead body was recovered from the roadside on 26th December 1986 in a partially decomposed state. It was found by the passing crowd in Rishikesh. The police were informed and it took them a month to determine her identity.

As we celebrate Stree Shakti this week, let’s remember this poignant story, even though late, and salute her for her sacrifices.

Stay Safe Everyone. Let’s celebrate Durga Puja from home.

 May Maa Durga bless us all.

 The 3rd Part of this Seven Part Series will release tomorrow where we will discuss another firebrand Bengali lady who left an indelible mark in Indian history.

Kings XI Punjab has two players who are on top of the run-scoring charts in this year’s IPL. Looking at the number of runs these two players have scored it’s quite difficult to understand how this team is languishing at the bottom of the table. But as the saying goes, it’s a team game, and everyone needs to contribute on a consistent basis, and this is where Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians have been so good. As Kings XI Punjab took on Mumbai Indians yesterday – one thing was clear that Kings XI will come hard because they have nothing to lose and we were all set for an exciting encounter to wrap up the Super Sunday.

So how did it go?

Here are my 5 points highlights from yesterday’s match held in Dubai.

1. Keiron Pollard

For the last few matches, Keiron Pollard had nothing to do with the bat because the top order was batting very well. Things changed yesterday as Mumbai Indians lost their first 3 wickets within the power play. Keiron Pollard is generally slotted at number 5 but he was pushed down the order and he came in at number 7. When he walked in the scoreboard read 116/5 in the 16th over. It quickly became 119/6 in the next over and Kings XI was all set to demolish Mumbai Indians. But this team is a champion team for a reason. The next 20 balls went all around the park courtesy Keiron Pollard and Nathan Coulter-Nile and Mumbai Indians scored close to 60 runs in the final 20 balls of the innings. Keiron Pollard scored 34 off just 12 deliveries and took the team to an almost winning total of 176.

2. Mohd. Shami

Shami is one of the most improved bowlers in world cricket in the last 12 months. From being hammered around the park in T20 cricket he has now become an integral part of any team that he plays for. He is super fit with one of the best exponents of the bouncer in world cricket. He added the yorkers too in his repertoire. Yesterday his bowling figures read 2/30 and that was pretty good with all the carnage that was going on around him. He was not done yet though because he had an important role to play in the subsequent super over which followed. 

3. KL Rahul

KL Rahul’s graph has been on the rise and this year he has been in a rich vein of form. The current Orange Cap holder became the first Indian yesterday to score 500 runs or more in 3 IPLs in a row. Though Mayank Agarwal got out early, Rahul ensured that he was always in sight of the asking run rate. He couldn’t take the team home though and once again got out at the most inopportune moment. This is one thing which he needs to work on. None the less, his score of 77 in 51 balls was easily the best performance with the bat amongst both the teams.

4. Jasprit Bumrah

You can’t keep Bumrah out of the system, can you? He is consistent and he was hitting the right length consistently. 3/24 is a superlative effort on any day but if you still end up on the losing side you have to give in that some days someone will be better than you. He was no doubt the best bowler amongst the two teams yesterday and each and every batsman struggled against him.

5. The Super Over’s Super Over

In the last cricket world cup, we had a tie in the finals which eventually took us to a super over. Quite inexplicably the super over was also tied and England won the World Cup because they had hit more boundaries than New Zealand. This boundary countback rule has since been discarded and the new rule suggests that super overs will continue till a winner is determined (quite like Sudden Death in soccer).

Yesterday we had the second tie of the day and Kings XI batted first. Bumrah was on the money in each of the six balls he bowled and Kings XI could score only 5 runs. Should have been an easy chase for Mumbai Indians but they ran into an inspired Md. Shami who defended those 5 runs and the match was tied again. This took us to another super over – the first time in the history of cricket – and finally, we had a winner with Mayank Agarwal hitting the winning runs. Mayank played a great role in keeping Mumbai Indians to 11 runs in the second super over by displaying tremendous agility in saving a six. As per the rules, the bowlers of the first super over couldn’t bowl in the second super over and that gave the Kings XI batsmen the necessary fillip to get those 2 vital points.

A great Super Sunday and possibly the best Sunday in months for cricket lovers. Both the matches went to super overs with the second one needing another super over to break the tie.

Now 4 teams are standing on 6 points and all of them still have a thin chance to progress into the playoffs because KKR can slip anytime.

What do you think? What was the turning point in yesterday’s match?

Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad are occupying the middle of the table and hence the encounter between both of them had an added spice because a win would take SRH to the 4th position, pushing KKR to 5th whereas a win for KKR would consolidate their position in the top half and would create a gap with SRH. Under this context, the top teams met at Abu Dhabi for their return leg. Both the teams have a lot of youngsters in the team and it was expected to be a close encounter.

So how did it go?

Here are my 5 points highlights from the match.

1. Eoin Morgan

Morgan is a born leader and hence I was quite surprised that he was not wearing the captain’s hat when KKR started their campaign. He is the man who turned around England’s white-ball cricket. The entire domestic setup in the country has changed over the last 5 years and now England produces a lot of cricketers who are tailor-made for white-ball cricket. He of course is a world cup winning captain too. Ideally, he is best placed to come in at number 4 but yesterday he came in at number 5 with KKR in trouble. The scoreboard read 88/3 in the 13th over. Russell was out pretty quickly and KKR needed a push in the last 4 overs. With Dinesh Karthik in tow, Morgan made sure that KKR had something to bowl at. 160 seemed to be a par score on that ground and KKR finished at 163. We are yet to see the real Morgan in this year’s IPL though and I am very sure it’s just around the corner.

2. Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik is a very good finisher and he has won some incredibly tough chases for India especially in T20 cricket. But when it came to IPL he has been very inconsistent and one of the biggest trouble is that he is asked to play the grappler role in the middle overs. I don’t think his game suits that position of number 4. But as a captain, he tried to take extra responsibility and tried too hard and mostly failed. Yesterday he was sent down the order at number 6 which I think is his best position. He came in with the scoreboard reading 105/5 in 15 overs. Karthik was enterprising from the ball 1 and he finished with 29 off 14 balls which was the best strike rate among both the teams. It was his partnership with Eoin Morgan which helped KKR reach 163 which was a pretty competitive total.

3. David Warner

With Kane Williamson injured, David Warner did the smart thing of asking Kane to open so that he can swing his bat during the powerplay. Pushing himself down to number 4 was good for Sunrisers Hyderabad because they have an inexperienced middle-order and Warner at 4 followed by Manish Pandey was a good option to have especially with a tricky chase in hand. SRH started very well going at almost 10 runs per over in the power play without losing any wicket. 58/0 suddenly became 70/3 in the space of 3 overs and SRH started feeling the heat. But Warner’s presence ensured that they were always in the hunt. He scored 47 off 33 balls with wickets falling around him and ensured that SRH didn’t go down without a fight.

4. Lockie Ferguson

With Pat Cummins spearheading the KKR bowling attack it was not possible to get Lockie Ferguson in the mix. Ferguson of course didn’t have a great IPL last season and was eventually dropped from the playing 11. But his international performance was great. In the last year’s world cup he picked up 23 wickets to finish as the second-highest wicket-taker in the tournament. Yesterday KKR decided to bolster their bowling attack by picking him in the playing 11. He made an instant impact and took the wicket of Kane Williamson to break a dangerous opening stand. His figures of 3/15 in 4 overs made many people wonder why was he not selected in the team so far. He was constantly hitting the right length and his yorkers were directed on the stumps with great results. That Morgan didn’t keep his final over for the end was something that was beyond understanding. If bowling was not enough he played a crucial role in sending Abdul Samad on his way with a superlative effort at the boundary line. Those 6 runs saved made a huge difference in the final equation. For KKR he was not done yet because he had a magical role to play in the super over.

5. KKR and Super Overs

With 18 runs to defend, a half-fit Andre Russell came to bowl the final over. He kept spraying the ball and Warner kept finding the gaps. It was almost all over as the equation read 2 runs off 1 ball but Andre Russell kept his best delivery for the final ball and Warner could get only one run to make it a tie. Super Overs have never been kind to KKR. They have played 3 Super Overs in earlier editions and lost them all. This time the ball was in Lockie Ferguson’s hand and he picked up the wicket of Warner in the very first delivery and a couple of balls later another perfect yorker took the wicket of Abdul Samad. 

SRH scored just 2 runs in their super over and KKR had a golden opportunity to break their jinx of super overs by getting to the winning runs without breaking a sweat.

What a great match on a Super Sunday at the IPL. This was the third super over this season and that’s the maximum ever in one season. It has been a highly competitive season so far and the Dil Maange More!

KKR consolidates its position in the top 4 with this win whereas SRH remains in the bottom half.

Should Andre Russell be replaced with Tom Banton? Should Lockie Ferguson be a regular in the playing XI going forward?

What do you think?

Appreciate your views.

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