IPL 10, Match 11, Kolkata Knight Riders v Kings XI Punjab: 5 Tracking Points

Fearless, clinical, professional, and clean striking. These were the four salient features of KKR’s chase tonight. Skipper Gautam Gambhir seems to be a different batsman when he puts the KKR jersey on. He saw through the chase with a classy unbeaten 72 which ultimately got the orange cap on his head.

Manish Pandey did not do any harm to his good form as he also remained unbeaten at 25 as KKR got home in a canter with 21 balls to spare and 8 wickets in hand. 171 looked like a par score but Gautam Gambhir sprang a surprise by sending Sunil Narine as an opener, a move which worked wonders for KKR. Due to his blazing 76 run partnership with the skipper, the target looked like a walk in the park for the 2-time champions. This win helped KKR dislodge Punjab from the top of the table.

Here are the 5 Tracking Points from today’s encounter between KKR and Kings XI:

1. Good start by Amla turns sluggish:

Hashim Amla, fresh from his undefeated half-century two nights ago, along with Manan Vohra gave Kings XI a good start against a quality bowling attack of KKR. The team 50 was raised in 4 overs (Sunil Narine gave away 7 runs without bowling a legal ball in the 5^th over). Amla, with the help of 3 stunning boundaries, reached 15 runs in 9 balls. But his innings lost rhythm once Umesh Yadav and Narine came into operation to bowl in tandem.

The big shots didn’t quite come off for Amla. After losing his partner Vohra, Amla’s struggle became palpable. He could muster only 10 runs in the last 18 balls he faced and finally fell to the debutant Grandhomme for a 27-ball 25. The early advantage of a good start got neutralized due to the sluggishness of his innings.

2. Maxwell, Miller promise a lot:

The Maxwell-Miller show is the most anticipated partnership of the IPL. Though they batted for just 3 balls together, their respective innings had spark but couldn’t get big, something which Kings XI Punjab would rue. Maxwell picked on leg-spinner Chawla in the 10^th over of the innings. The Punjab skipper hit 16 runs off the first three balls – including two exclusively timed inside-out shots over covers – to get Punjab innings back on track. He fell to Umesh Yadav for an entertaining 14-ball 25 which paved the way for Miller to take center-stage.

Miller got into the act early in his innings as he hit a glorious six over cover off Grandhomme on a free-hit to get his innings underway. He then smoked a six and a four off Umesh but was dismissed on an attempted third consecutive boundary off the over. His 19-ball 28, just like Maxwell’s 25, promised a lot but did not convert into something big.

3. Umesh strikes thrice in an over:

Coming back from an injury is always tough but Umesh Yadav had a night to remember as he ended with figures of 4/33. Umesh Yadav was the difference between Punjab getting to 190 instead of the eventual 171. He went for 10 runs off the first two balls of his last over, which was the 18^th of the innings, but came back strongly to send Miller back to the pavilion. Yadav was on a hattrick as Saha was the man walking back off the very next delivery. He didn’t take a hattrick but struck again a ball after, to send Punjab’s last hope of getting to 190 – Axar Patel – back to the hut. Umesh picked 3 wickets in 4 balls which hurt Punjab immensely.

4. Sunil Narine walks out to open:

Sunil Narine returned with excellent figures of 1/19 but nobody expected him to walk out with Gambhir to open the innings. It was a master move by Gambhir which paid rich dividends as Narine stroked the ball cleanly. When Narine hit his first six – off Sandeep Sharma over long-off – people thought this might just be it as far as his innings was concerned. But he surprised many to launch a severe attack on Kings XI. He smacked consecutive boundaries off Maxwell, who went for 18 runs in his only over, to go past his highest score of 13 in the IPL.

The best was reserved for the next over which was bowled by Varun Aaron. Narine welcomed Aaron with a flat six over long-on, which had the reminiscence of Chris Gayle’s style. He hit another six off the next one, same direction but cleaner in terms of timing. He was striking it purely and hit another neat boundary of the third ball to get 16 off the first 3. He nailed the fourth one as one, except that it found the only fielder stationed at deep square leg. 37 off 18 balls certainly give a good reading. He was awarded with the Man of the Match award for his ‘all-round’ performance.

5. Finesse of Gambhir:

Gambhir is striking them cleanly but it hasn’t been any pure than what it was tonight. Whenever he hit the ball the bat made a big thud. He was middling everything and found the gaps almost every time. 44 out of his 72 runs came in boundaries, all of them hit with the skill of a surgeon. He was experienced enough to hit the second gear after the initial blitz to make sure there were no hiccups along the way.

Also watch | Comedy of errors by Kolkata Knight Riders, Gambhir does the juggling act

By virtue of his 72*, Gambhir won the orange cap which also led KKR to go to the top of the pile with 6 points. Gambhir is looking in ominous form this season. His captaincy has been commendable as he has led them with both passion and precision.