IPL no doubt is
a great entertainer – and what a match it turned out to be - 15th Match (N),
Mumbai, Apr 21 2021, - 422 runs scored and can there be so many heroes in the
same match – bowling hero and batting heroes in the same innings ! - awe-struck !!
KKR started
chasing a big total in the worst manner possible – getting reduced to 31/5
courtesy magic of Deepak Chahar – the scorecard read : : 1-1 (Shubman Gill, 0.4
ov), 2-17 (Nitish Rana, 2.5 ov), 3-27 (Eoin Morgan, 4.3 ov), 4-31 (Sunil
Narine, 4.6 ov), 5-31 (Rahul Tripathi, 5.2 ov), but some different script was
to follow : Dinesh Karthik made 40 off
24 with 4 fours and 2 sixers – big hitting Andre Russel charmed with 54 off
mere 22 with 3 fours and SIX sixers .. .. and then when the match appeared lost,
Sam Curran was hit for 30 runs in an over – 4 sixers and 1 4 by Pat Cummins
whose 66 off 34 threatened to snatch the match away.
Kolkata Knight Riders have
lost 3 of their 4 matches and CSK has won 3 of their 4 – the match would be
remembered for the fight that KKR put in. Ground fielding is astonishing –
Ravindra Jadeja appears everywhere, Faf never misses catches – Rahul Tripathi
is electric and then odd mistake like Nitish Rana dropping and helping the ball
over the ropes – it was all happening !
CSK has been the butt of
many memes and there have been harsh calls for his head – Rituraj Gaikwad had a
great outing. Opening partnership of 115 and he departed in 13th
over making 64 off 42 balls with 4 sixers .. .. Faf du Plessis powered his way
to unbeaten 95 and a mass total of 220 powered by cameos by Moeen Ali, MS Dhoni
and a single ball six by Ravi Jaddu.
Wankhede was reveling to
the batsmen paradise but Deepak Chahar had other ideas as his deliveries
wobbled troubling batsman. In a game where 26 sixes were hit, Deepak Chahar dismissed
Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill, Eoin Morgan and Sunil Naraine .. .. and when
everything looked lost, Russell hit a 21-ball fifty, coming in at five down in
5.2 overs. Cummins walked in when Russell was out, saw Dinesh Karthik fall too,
and then reeled off a 23-ball fifty. But in the end, the Super Kings had put up
too many runs and taken too many wickets up front. Obviously the tail could not
match or provide ammo for Cummins.
So in a match – Ruturaj Gaikwad
and Faf du Plessis shone, followed by cameos by Moeen Ali who did not bowl a
single delivery; MSD too came to bat and hit a six much to the delight of his
fans and Jaddu lofted the only delivery he faced for a six out of hands of
Rana. Pat Cummins delivered fast and Prasidh Krishna was hitting more than 140 in
all his deliveries in a single over- returning Kamlesh Nagarkoti sprayed it all
over. Varun Chakravarthy & Sunil Narine, bowled well and there was so
much Tamil advice flowing for Varun from DK.
At one stage after the CSK
blitz and Chahar toring them out, KKR appeared falling to a loss of a very big
margin – Russel & Cummins showed other ideas – but in the end, a big total
despite poor bowling by Sam Curran and flow of wides from Shardul Thakur – CSK emerged
victorious. Russell's fall was as
anti-climactic as his innings was thrilling. Having got to fifty off with his
sixth six - each one hit hard enough to launch the ball into orbit - he faced
up to Sam Curran in the 12th over and left a length ball on leg stump that he
thought was going down. He had moved too far across though and misjudged it, as
the delivery took out leg stump, leaving him in disbelief, even as the Super
Kings rejoiced. Then Cummins whacked
Curran for 30 – 20 off final over was too demanding and Prasidh Krishna stumbled in crossing for a
first run and was a bit slow to turn around for the second, it was all over for
the Knight Riders. In between Lungi
Ngidi bowled a tight spell of 28 off 4 with 3 wickets ..
Great match for fans !
22.4.2021
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