IPL 2017, Match 40, DD v SRH: CT Player of the Match - Corey Anderson

A languishing Delhi Daredevils side finally had something to cheer for as they registered a clinical win with each of their batsmen getting among the runs. The name that stood out from the lot though was New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson, who stayed there till the end to seal a confident run-chase for the Daredevils.

The big hitter Corey

Corey Anderson always had the reputation of powerful striking, but he took it to another level on New Year’s Day 2014 when he set what was back then the world record for the fastest ODI hundred with a 36-ball onslaught against West Indies in Queenstown. In recent times, he has cemented his spot in all three formats for the New Zealand side and played a key role in their run to the ODI World Cup final in 2015.

Well-paced innings

Needing 186 to bag two invaluable points in the dying stages of the tournament, DD started off with a surprising blitz from Karun Nair. Samson played a handy knock as well, but the Daredevils kept losing wickets every 3 to 4 overs. Anderson came in at a stage when the momentum was with the Delhi Daredevils. The scorecard read 109/3 with 2 balls to go in the 12th over. DD required 77 off 50, with Anderson and Shreyas Iyer at the crease.

Corey was slow off the blocks, but a six off Siddarth Kaul got him up and running. He clobbered a ball flat on off stump over wide long-on. It was the first of two more to come. Anderson lost Shreyas Iyer at the other end when the able Chris Morris joined him at the crease.

The duo pushed further to knock at the doors of victory. Both squeezed a boundary off the 16th over bowled by Mohammad Siraj. Anderson dispatched a slower ball outside leg over the square leg boundary. The Daredevils were cruising at that point, with 24 required off the last three. Anderson then made life easier for DD as he smashed 12 runs off Bhuvi’s final over, which included a four and a massive six. The game had pretty much slipped out of the hands of the defending champions. It boiled down to 1 off 6 balls for the Daredevils.

Corey seals the deal

Anderson fittingly brought up the winning runs as he flat-batted an Henriques delivery past the non-striker to the left of mid-off. The Kiwi all-rounder finished on an unbeaten 41 off 24. Although his wasn’t a mammoth inning like Stokes’ or Warner’s, Anderson played a responsible knock to see his side home, all the while striking the ball in excess of 170.

A win at the Feroz Shah Kotla in front of their home crowd meant the Delhi Daredevils were still alive in the tournament. DD will be a happy bunch, and the happiest of the lot might be Corey Anderson, who is our CT Player of the Match this evening.