IPL 10, Match 19, KXIP v SRH: 5 Tracking Points

Despite strong starts to the tournament, both the Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Kings XI Punjab have found themselves on the losing side in their last games. The Sunrisers began their title defense in style, but have slumped slightly of late. The Kings XI Punjab also seemed to have left their forgettable seasons behind. However, the ghost of the underperformers was beginning to haunt them again.

Both teams went into this game to turn things around. The pendulum swung both ways, and the match witnessed many twists. Things eventually went right down to the wire, but it was the Sunrisers who came out on top to win by 5 runs. Spare a thought for young Manan Vohra, who scored perhaps one of the best knocks in IPL history and almost took his side over the finish line. When his side looked well and truly out of the contest, he brought the equation down to 15 off 9.

Nevertheless, some clever bowling from the Purple Cap holder Bhuvneshwar Kumar saw the Sunrisers clinch a last over thriller and bag two valuable points.

Here are the 5 tracking points from the game between the Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Kings XI Punjab.

1. Sunrisers struggled to score in powerplay

Put into bat, the Sunrisers Hyderabad got off to a slow start on a sluggish Hyderabad pitch. Shikhar Dhawan departed after a run-a-ball 15. Veteran bowler Ishant Sharma kept things tight from one end as he bowled three overs on the trot.

Runs were clearly hard to come by, as skipper David Warner found himself struggling at 6 of 16. At the end of the field restrictions, the Sunrisers Hyderabad were at 29 for 1, their lowest score in overs 1 to 6 in this edition of the IPL so far.

2. Warner steadied the ship for Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Sunrisers had to toil for their runs when they found themselves in a spot of bother. Warner watched from the other end as he lost both Henriques and Yuvraj off two consecutive deliveries by Axar Patel. Following a top order collapse, Warner stitched a much-needed 50-run partnership with Naman Ojha. The SRH skipper pulled things back for his side as he brought up his 34th half-century.

With his 50, Warner once again reclaimed the Orange Cap and edged past Gautam Gambhir to become the batsman with the most 50s in IPL history. A tired David Warner remained undefeated at 70 and guided the Sunrisers to a respectable 159, which seemed a near impossible total after the first 6 overs.

3. The Afghan onslaught

Debutant Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan, the two Afghan players who were the talk of the auction this year, found themselves playing together for the Sunrisers Hyderabad today. After expensive first overs, both got into the action. In tandem, the Afghans bagged three important wickets in the span of two overs, leaving the Kings XI tottering at 62-5. Nabi cleaned up England’s Eoin Morgan.

Rashid Khan, on the other hand, caused troubles for the big-hitting David Miller. A wicket was on the cards, and a wicket he got as Miller’s woodwork was disturbed. Shortly after Miller departed, Rashid castled Wriddhiman Saha for a duck. The Kings XI Punjab were pretty much out of the game at that point.

4. Manan Vohra’s heroics in vain

Although the Sunrisers Hyderabad looked in a commanding position, there was one man who stood between them and a victory. Manan Vohra, who looked to attack from the very beginning, was still at the crease. Although wickets fell around him, Vohra was well settled as he brought up an important half-century. He then took on the SRH bowlers and dispatched them to all parts of the ground. Vohra smashed Rashid Khan and Barinder

Vohra smashed Rashid Khan and Barinder Sran in their final overs, and quickly brought down the required rate which was creeping over 12.He single-handedly brought KXIP to a position from where the side indeed looked like they’d sneak through to a spectacular victory. However, it was that man Bhuvneshwar Kumar who kept his nerve, and removed the dangerous Vohra. Bhuvi’s 5-for ensured that KXIP didn’t snatch the game away from the Sunrisers. With Vohra out for a fantastic 95, it was more or less game, set and match for the Sunrisers Hyderabad.

He single-handedly brought KXIP to a position from where the side indeed looked like they’d sneak through to a spectacular victory. However, it was that man Bhuvneshwar Kumar who kept his nerve and removed the dangerous Vohra. Bhuvi’s 5-for ensured that KXIP didn’t snatch the game away from the Sunrisers. With Vohra out for a fantastic 95, it was more or less game, set and match for the Sunrisers Hyderabad.

5. Bhuvneshwar’s splendid bowling

The Indian pacer proved once more that he is the worthy holder of the Purple Cap. Initially, he got Amla out LBW off the very first ball of the innings and then scalped the big one in the form of Maxwell. At the death, when Vohra seemed like running away with the game, he was brought into the attack and dismissed Mohit, Cariappa and finally, Vohra that sealed the game for SRH.

He finished with magnificent figures of 19/5 in his 4 overs and was fittingly awarded the Man of the Match. With 15 wickets in his tally in just 5 games, he has strengthened his position at the top of the tree and is by far the leading wicket-taker in the tournament.