The Kolkata Knight Riders defeated the Delhi Capitals on Saturday to consolidate their fourth place and establish a four-point lead over the Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Kings XI Punjab.
In the Sunrisers’ previous game against the Rajasthan Royals, the middle order rescued them after David Warner and Jonny Bairstow fell cheaply. However, they fell apart spectacularly on Saturday when the Kings XI carried out an unlikely heist. This is how it developed
56 for 1
In pursuit of a modest target of 127, the “old school” David Warner shows up and faces off against the Kings XI’s gun thrower, Mohammed Shami. The Sunrisers captain lifts Shami above the deck for six, then punches him over his head and pushes him past the middle by four. In all, Warner scores 22 runs of 13 balls for Shami. The Sunrisers are 52-0 in six overs.
Enter Ravi Bishnoi. Get out of Warner. After having swept back a googly for four first balls, Warner aims another sweep back on the second, but Bishnoi finds more laps and rebounds. The ball hits Warner’s glove and Rahul grabs a catch. Paul Reiffel, the outfield referee, rejects the appeal, which Rahul successfully reviews to overturn the no-out decision on the field. Warner went for a quick 35.
58 by 2
M Ashwin had bullied Jonny Bairstow with googlies in his first two overs. Ashwin, like his legmate Bishnoi, enjoys bowling more than spreading legs. It was the same variation that so impressed Stephen Fleming and MS Dhoni that they spent INR 4.5 crore at the 2016 auction to get it at the Rising Pune Supergiant.
In the past two seasons, Ashwin has had the ability to go off the field. Bairstow is ready for the googly in Ashwin’s third over. It is shaped to sweep the break through the square leg. However, Ashwin breaks his legs to get into Bairstow and throws it around his legs.
67 times 3
Manish Pandey is taking his time settling down as the Dubai countryside slows down. Abdul Samad rises to number 4 to perhaps target the bowlers and shorter limits. Or maybe the Sunrisers just don’t want to risk Vijay Shankar, who hurt his thumb on the field, in a little chase. Shankar had also suffered from back spasms early in the tournament.
Rahul looks for another breakthrough and brings Shami back. The Kings XI’s top bowler will finish his spot in ninth. Another hitter may have chosen to simply fire Shami, but Samad is a six-hitter, and so he has been chosen ahead of Abhishek Sharma.
Shami throws it right into the slot, but Samad doesn’t get below length and weakly cuts him in half, where Chris Jordan places the aerial catch. The Kings XI begin to believe.
100 by 4
Pandey and Shankar threaten to close a second consecutive chase. They work past the first few shots by dropping the ball into the holes. Pandey, in particular, struggles to read Bishnoi’s bulging eyes, and once Jordan returns, he seeks to risk his arm. He snaps on a full leg side throw and misses.
Jordan then changes his line outside, but overlaps it. Pandey, like Samad, doesn’t get under it and smash it in midair. J Suchith, the runner-up, crosses to his right and catches a catch out of nowhere in front of the Kings XI dugout.
In the 2017 IPL final, Suchith had eliminated Washington Sundar from the last ball as a sub-fielder to seal a one-run victory for the Mumbai Indians. Pandey’s grip will also result in a game-winning fielding effort.
The Sunrisers need 27 of 23 balls.
110 by 5
All the Sunrisers’ hopes are on Shankar. He had lined up his Tamil Nadu teammate Ashwin and led him straight into a pair of four. Then there was a languid loft unit midway for four from Jordan. After that limit, the Sunrisers only need 20 of 18 balls. At that stage, the ESPNcricinfo forecaster put Kings XI’s chances at a mere 5.47%.
Jason Holder hits Arshdeep Singh to signal and Shankar responds for the single, taking Nicholas Pooran’s arm. Pooran misses the stumps, but Shankar hits his helmet grid as the ball slides off the grass and bounces extra. After the Sunrisers medical staff treat Shankar, he pulls himself together and signals that he’s ready to move on.
Shankar wants to finish back-to-back games for the Sunrisers. He expects a short delivery and ventures to the side of the leg, hoping to manipulate the gap between the back point and the short third man. Singh keeps it short, but he’s an off-beat cutter that grabs and has Shankar behind Rahul.
It all comes down to the Sunrisers needing 17 of 12 balls.
112 times 6
Jordan vs. Holder. Rahul, Chris Gayle, Glenn Maxwell and Pooran of the Kings XI are part of an intense discussion about Jordan. He will go bowling at Big Jase from the wicket, the leg side limit being the shortest. Arshdeep will have the bowling mat from the last end, with the leg side boundary being the largest.
Jordan brings with him the reputation of being a genuine die-hard bowler for England, but he hasn’t had his IPL moment. That Super Over against the Mumbai Indians might have gone wrong for him if it weren’t for Mayank Agarwal’s impressive save on the edge.
Agarwal is injured now, but Jordan has a chance to stamp his authority on the IPL. Her first ball is a medium stump yorker and Holder stabs her long for one. Priyam Garg hits a single in the second to get Holder back on strike. Jordan’s plan is simple: hide the ball out of Holder’s reach and deny him access to the shorter fence on the side of the legs. Jordan executes his plan and has Holder snapping a trap for Mandeep Singh in the bonus cover.
Mandeep had lost his father on Friday night, but here he was pressured by the Kings XI.
112 times 7
The Sunrisers need 15 of nine balls. They need more magic from Rashid Khan after he had gotten rid of Rahul with a perfect mistake earlier in the night. Jordan swerves once more, and Khan just passes it directly to Pooran in sweeper cover for a golden duck. Penultimate turn of double gate. Four years after being pulled from Sky Sports’ IPL analyst panel as a late replacement for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Jordan has his IPL moment. They are panic stations for the Sunrisers.
114 by 8
Arshdeep has 13 to defend to hit. He has only played three first-class matches and 18 white ball games for Punjab in national cricket. He faces Sandeep Sharma, his top state buddy, who is Sunrisers’ swing pitcher in the IPL. Sunrises need you to swing the bat now. Arshdeep, however, digs into an auxiliary cutter and makes Sharma butt a pull to the middle.
114 by 9
Garg has crossed and the Sunrisers need 13 of four balls. You’re probably wondering how it came down to this. Arshdeep drives another cutter into the stump and challenges Garg to craft rhythm for himself. However, the batter is short on room and only drags him to the end, where Jordan runs, lunges forward, and takes another smart catch.
114 all out
With the game over, Arshdeep gets another cutter to hit the field, drawing a weak push from number 11 Khaleel Ahmed to the point. Ahmed simply entertains himself with the single and is emphatically defeated by a direct hit from Bishnoi. He lifts his trainer Anil Kumble from his seat and even makes him clap animatedly.
****
Having lost games from seemingly winning positions, the Kings XI made a great escape to secure their fourth straight win, increasing their playoff chances. As for the Sunrisers, they are yet to come out, but how will they recover from such a cataclysmic collapse?
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