IPL 10, Match 8, KXIP v RCB: Kings XI Punjab Ratings

Everything went wrong for Royal Challengers Bangalore despite winning the toss. AB de Villiers was magical, but it was unfortunate to not have anyone else besides him to step up and support him- not with the bat, not with the ball. But it is absolutely brilliant to see Kings XI Punjab start on a winning streak. The revamped side is now confident and has more belief, and trusts a little more in their abilities. Maxwell himself has undergone a huge transformation and has been leading his side well along with providing the ‘Big Show’ with the bat.

Surprisingly, in the 3 matches played, it is not RCB’s bowling side that has looked so hollow, but their inconsistent, ever-changing, injury-struck batting line up that has looked extremely vulnerable. There’s definitely one man, each time, who decides to step up and guide them through. But the side has got to make sure that their inconsistency does not subject them to humiliation. Whereas, KXIP have learned from their mistakes and are looking to improvise and have done well in doing so, so far- regular breakthroughs when bowling, batting according to the situation. But, since these two wins have come at their homeground, Indore, they should be careful of carrying the momentum to other venues too.

148/4 was never going to be enough, they were about 30-35 runs short, with no one to anchor the innings with De Villiers. The biggest factor in today’s win for the KXIP was that they were made to chase. Why Watson gave them the privilege is questionable, since it cost them the game. But, credit to Hashim Amla who took upon himself the responsibility to chase the total, unbeaten. Manan Vohra and Glenn Maxwell made their contributions as well. The match was dominated by the 2 South Africans, but it was Axar Patel who stole the limelight.

A look at how the Kings XI Punjab players fared today according to their performance:

Manan Vohra- 6.5/10

He provided a great opening start and combined with Hashim Amla, to anchor the innings. With 34 off 21, he was looking in good touch but he departed prematurely once again after getting off to a start. He had made sure that he utilized the powerplay, contrary to the RCB batsmen. This ensured KXIP of a headstart, and then there was hardly any looking back. So, while at it, it was a good one, but he should stay on for longer now.

Hashim Amla- 8.5/10

A match-winning knock, in classy Hashim Amla style. He got accustomed to the situation well, even when Vohra departed and rotated the strike well. A great opening start, some stellar boundaries and pure cricketing shots, the acceleration and switching of gears made his performance a class act, and moreover, a case for sure-shot victory. With 58 off 38 at a strike rate nearing 153, Amla registered his 2^nd IPL fifty. The steady knock was the dominance of the South Africans in this match.

Axar Patel- 8.5/10

Though the experimentation of sending him to bat at No. 3 did not quite work as he was dismissed at 9, he was quite exceptional with the ball. In the four overs bowled, he boasted of an economy rate of 3, conceded only 12 runs and bowled 13 dot balls. In that process, he also dismissed Watson for 1.

Skipper Maxwell and the KXIP management (read, Sehwag) seem to show some serious backing for Axar. First, the move of opening the attack with him and then sending him at No. 3. While the former was an incredible decision, they will probably give him one more chance with the latter.

Glenn Maxwell- 8/10

He seems to have gained a lot of confidence from his maiden Test hundred. From then on, it has only been the way up for Maxwell. Be it becoming the captain of KXIP, or winning two games straight, or even contributing with the bat in both these victories. The Big Show has returned, and how!

His captaincy again, was decent. The horror they had to go through during the death overs when de Villiers took on them, was a slight misjudgement, and unavoidable (or maybe, not) but otherwise, it has been a good day for him on field. His 43 off 22 balls was a brilliant one and there could not have been a better end to the match for the KXIP skipper.

Wriddhiman Saha- 6/10

Did not bat. But, he took a stellar catch to dismiss Mandeep Singh. His brilliant wicket-keeping skills were displayed when he took that beautiful catch. More credit to him than Varun Aaron for taking that one may say. In case you missed it, I recommend you to watch the highlights. The commentary on cricbuzz explained, “The ball skied upwards and stayed there till eternity till Saha circled under it after running back and then despite misjudging it, threw himself in the air to take it out of thin air.”

The ball was not flying, he was.

Also read| IPL 2017, Match 8, KXIP v RCB: CT Player of the Match – Hashim Amla

David Miller- 2.5/10

Did not bat. Standard points for taking the field.

Marcus Stonis- 2.5/10

3 overs bowled, no wickets taken and 28 runs conceded. Second most uneconomical with 9.33 runs per over- a performance that can be neglected, because of the contribution that did not impact much.

Mohit Sharma- 2.5/10

4-0-47-0. 47 runs conceded. 11.75 runs conceded. He was unfortunate to have been subjected to that kind of ABD-carnage towards the death overs. But, there’s hardly anything to justify those runs conceded.

Sandeep Sharma- 4.5/10

He, or Maxwell, noted that one shot that Vishnu Vinod had attempted earlier and luckily gotten away with, so he forced him into playing that shot again and made sure he departed with the ball falling in the safe hands of Maxwell. So, points for the execution. His figures are decent, 4-0-26-1.

T Natarajan- 2.5/10

He wasn’t given more than one over, perhaps because he was really expensive in it. He conceded 13 runs, doing that. So, poor performance from the youngster who is still trying to fit in.

Varun Aaron- 5.5/10

It was Pawan Negi the other day punishing DD for releasing him. Here, Varun Aaron was punishing RCB for doing that to him. He was best among the fast bowlers with 4 overs bowled, 21 runs conceded and 2 wickets taken. He did not let Kedar Jadhav settle, firstly, so that is a bonus. The other comes in the form of dismissing almost-set Mandeep Singh, though, it was Saha’s excellence that got him that wicket.