Month: April 2024

Hello and a warm welcome to yet another blog on the daily match reviews on this year’s IPL. I will be covering the 4-weekend games in this blog, where there was a thriller at Delhi, JacksBall at Ahmedabad and much more. So without any further delay, let’s get started!

Delhi Capitals VS Mumbai Indians | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi
Hardik Pandya won the toss and opted to field first in the first-afternoon game happening on Saturday this year. But they were immediately met by the fiery Fraser-McGurk, who didn’t even spare Bumrah and got Delhi off to a flyer in the powerplay. The Capitals did lose their openers shortly after the powerplay but the platform was set for the middle-order. Shai Hope impressed with the bat, hitting a quick 40, followed by Pant and Stubbs having another normal day, stitching yet another 50-run partnership and bringing the Capitals close to 260. In MI’s second 250+ run chase, the top order faltered and were bundled out quickly. But Hardik and Tilak Varma played a beautiful hand and kept their team alive in the contest. But soon wickets tumbled, but still Tilak refused to give up and alongside David, gave another chance for their team but Rasikh was brilliant in the end, picked up key wickets and MI fell short, handing the Capitals a 10-run victory.
In yet another thriller at Delhi, I would say the DC management has picked 2 superstars, Jake Fraser-McGurk with the bat and Rasikh with the ball. Both played instrumental roles in their team’s victory this game as Fraser-McGurk was the one who set a perfect platform for a 250+ score and while the chase was going tense, Rasikh was accurate in his line and lengths and picked up 3 key wickets. For MI, they have entered a must-win scenario in their remaining matches but they would be happy that their skipper finally had a good hit with the bat and Bumrah’s bowling, where he gets wickets regularly and is also economical. The Capitals have reached the mid-table and would be hoping to continue their new-found momentum and enter the top-4. So overall, again DC posted a 200+ total in their home ground and yet again, the chase was nervy but in the end, they prevailed in both games and in this one, they won by 10 runs

Lucknow Super Giants VS Rajasthan Royals | Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
Sanju Samson won the toss and elected to field first on a high-scoring track at the Ekana. This move worked in his favour as the Royals picked up 2 quick wickets but Rahul and Hooda counter-attacked beautifully and played at a brisk rate. At a point, it looked like LSG would cruise past 210 but Sandeep Sharma was brilliant yet again and restricted the Super Giants to 196, about 15-20 runs on what they intended to hit. The Royals had a solid and quick start but soon the top-order fell and it seemed like LSG would win the game. But Samson and Jurel settled in together and then called in the big shots, suddenly taking the game away from LSG. Some dropped chances also helped the Royals as both Samson and Jurel cruised past the target with an over left and with 7 wickets in hand.

In RR’s 8th win of the season, once again their domination in the powerplay set the tone in the first innings and even though Rahul and Hooda were completely in control, a man with not many wickets, Ravi Ashwin broke the partnership and from there on Sandeep took over and the Royals displayed some extraordinary death bowling. In the batting, even though Parag had a rare failure, Samson showed his true potential and took all the responsibility, supported well by Jurel, who has had a bad season so far. Samson now is on the leaderboard to the orange cap. For LSG, they would be happy that KL’s strike rate has improved as well as he is scoring a heap of runs, but they would want to work on their fielding especially as they were sloppy on the field this game. So overall, even the Super Giants in Ekana failed to stop the Rajasthan Royals juggernaut as they have 8 wins out of 9.

Gujarat Titans VS Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
Faf du Plessis once again won the toss and opted to field first in the second day game played at the iconic Narendra Modi Stadium. The Titans lost Gill and Saha early but the TN boys, SRK and Sudharsan were phenomenal, getting a six almost every over and sparing no spinner. Both got their fifties and Miller also showcased his brilliance, setting up a target of 201 for RCB, about 10-15 runs above par. Faf and Kohli started the innings quickly but Faf departed in the back end of the powerplay. Kohli never let the game slip away and carefully played the spinners well. On the other end was Will Jacks, who was struggling to get momentum initially, entered beast mode to the power infinity after the strategic powerplay, getting his fifty in the 15th over and his 100 in the 16th over, hitting Rashid Khan for 6, 6, 4, 6, 6 in the end to get his 100 as well to give RCB a huge victory by 9 wickets and 4 overs spare.
In RCB’s third win in the season, the bowling by both teams was under par as it was a 180 wicket, a rare track where the bowlers did get some purchase. The Titans would be happy to see the rise of SRK finally in the IPL, getting a quick fifty and would want Sudharsan to continue his glorious run in the tournament. But their bowlers were put down by the Royal sword of the top three as Faf started, Kohli took the initiative and steadied the ship and Jacks finished a chase, intended to end in the 19th or 20th over, finished it by the 16th over. So now we have 4 games in our hands, 4 must-win games, the next one against the same opposition at the Chinnaswamy and pray the Royals win almost every game to help us. So overall, a bad day for the bowlers on a track which did give them something, but the silver lining was Jacks’s innings, mainly after the second time out, where we managed to score a mammoth 58 runs in the next two overs.

Chennai Super Kings VS Sunrisers Hyderabad | M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai
Pat Cummins won the toss and opted to field first surprisingly, given that his team are the masters batting first. The CSK batters had quite a similar innings comparing with the LSG game. Rahane left early, Ruturaj and Mitchell counter attacked and notched up fifties and Dube giving the finish, the difference being Ruturaj missed his 100 by 2 runs and CSK ending at 212. The Sunrisers also had a similar innings comparing with the RCB game, where both Head and Abhishek fell early and the innings completely falling apart after the openers were dismissed cheaply. The difference being that they were hardly able to hit a boundary against CSK, who completely executed thier plans and didn’t allow Klaasen or Samad to tee off and give SRH even a bit of hope, giving the Super Kings a massive 73-run victory and they climb to number 3 on the points table.

In a classic CSK win, they would be proud that they replicated the same kind of batting as shown in the LSG game, giving a stiff target for SRH to face. One problem is the form of Rahane which they will definitely try to solve. For SRH, they wouldn’t be proud because they almost replicated the way they played against RCB, and here it was much worse because there were no fireworks from the middle-order and crumbled in the pressure again of batting second. So a traditional win for CSK at Chepauk I would say, with the batters hitting a 200+ total and the bowlers clinched it with brilliant execution, similar to their victory against GT on the same track as well… So maybe they can use this track in the knockouts if they qualify as they have been scored dominant victories here….

Hello and a warm welcome to yet another blog on the daily match reviews on the IPL this season. These 3 games saw a thriller in Delhi, RCB win a game and a six-hitting fest in Kolkata. So without any further delays, let’s get started!

Delhi Capitals VS Gujarat Titans | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi
Shubman Gill won the toss and opted to field first on a flat track. The DC innings started poorly as they lost 3 wickets in the powerplay. But Rishabh Pant and a promoted Axar Patel steadied the ship, playing the GT spinners carefully and also playing some big hits. Axar fell after his fifty but Pant was in beast mode and along with Stubbs, they amassed a huge 224 on board, with the last 5 overs going for a massive 97 runs. The Titans lost their skipper early with Sudarsan at his prime and steadied the innings with Saha. But Kuldeep and youngster Rasikh triggered a collapse and the innings fell. But Miller came back to form and gave an outside chance for the Titans, along with Rashid Khan, the latter fighting till the last ball but the Titans fell short and handed the Capitals a hard-fought 4-run victory.
In another 400+ match in the IPL, I feel was a good chance for the Capitals to promote Axar because they knew the Titans had some world-class spinners. It was necessary to avoid playing the big shots and keep building the innings against them, which Axar and Pant did perfectly, taking some boundaries with them as well. But I would want to criticize the use of Sai Kishore in the 19th over was unnecessary, with Pant and Stubbs playing at top gear, which cost them 21 runs that over and Pant finished with a 32-run over bowled by Mohit, which cost the game for GT. But even in their batting, the Titans crumbled at the worst possible moment but would be happy to see Miller play at his best and Rashid continue his form. The Capitals and the whole of India would be so happy seeing the way Pant has played in his comeback IPL after whatever has happened to him in the last 12 months or so, inspiring not only cricketers, but the common people to never give up and keep fighting like a champion. So a superb all-round performance by DC, led by their skipper but the Titans gave them a huge scare in the back end of the innings, but in the end, Mukesh held his nerve in the last over, giving the Capitals their first win at Delhi.

Sunrisers Hyderabad VS Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Uppal Stadium, Hyderabad
Faf du Plessis won the toss and opted to bat first at Uppal. Kohli and Faf started quickly but in the back end of the powerplay, Faf fell and shortly after Jacks fell. Kohli struggled after the powerplay but Patidar continued his form and belted Markande for 4 sixes to give the momentum back to RCB and notched a brilliant fifty. But he fell after hitting his fifty and the Sunrisers built the momentum soon after and picked up Kohli as well. Green finally had a good hit and Swapnil pitched in 2 boundaries to give RCB 206, which is a small total compared with the Sunrisers. But Head and Abhishek fell early and soon after Klaasen and Markram fell, all within the powerplay to give the advantage to RCB. Pat Cummins and Shahbaz played a last hand but when Cummins fell, the match was over, with RCB shocking Uppal with a massive 35-run win.
On a memorable day for me and the RCB fans after a month, this win was even sweeter because we defended 206 with the mighty Sunrisers, the team which hit 287 at the Chinnaswamy. In the batting, a concern is Kohli’s strike rate, hadn’t been for that Patidar special, RCB would have maximum hit about 180. Patidar’s knock was a game-changer because it was a slower pitch at Uppal and he hit the same man who dismissed him in the reverse fixture at the Chinnaswamy, hit him mercilessly for 4 sixes, reminding me of that Ravi Bishnoi over, where he hit him for 28 runs in our famous Eliminator win 2 years ago, and smashing the joint-fastest fifty by an RCB batter in the IPL. For SRH, it was just an off day at the office, nothing wrong with the team and showing how they fell to the pressure the opposition created in the first innings. So overall, on a slower wicket where Patidar’s knock and Swapnil’s crazy 2-wicket over, where he even conceded 19 runs making the difference, handing RCB and the fans a memorable day, which the team deserves for the hard work and have to continue the momentum they have created in the last 3 games.

Kolkata Knight Riders VS Punjab Kings | Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Sam Curran won the toss and opted to field first, in a game which would be a record-breaking one after a few hours. KKR openers had a usual, explosive start in the powerplay but they didn’t lose a wicket. Salt, Narine, Shreyas, Venkatesh and Russell, all contributed and were looking set for about 280+. But the Kings pulled things back by removing Russell almost before the death-overs but Iyer gave the perfect finish and gave the Knight Riders a massive 262, the highest at Eden. But they wouldn’t have imagined in their wildest nightmares what happened. The Kings’ openers finally had an explosive start with Prabhsimran notching a superb fifty but was run out in the back end of the powerplay. But then Bairstow started smoking sixes with Rossouw giving him good company. Narine bowled beautifully as he was the only bowler spared and gave his team some hope. But he bowled out soon after and then came one of the young superstars of the Kings, Shashank Singh, the moment he came, this man hit sixes for fun, no matter where the bowler bowled. Bairstow also continued and hit a brilliant 100, with his partner getting a fifty and giving the Knight Riders an absolute thumping by 8 wickets and chased a huge 262 with 8 balls spare.

In another insane game in the IPL, holding the record for maximum sixes hit in a T20 game (42), the bowlers had no clue what happened in this game. I guess except for Narine and Rahul Chahar, not even a single bowler was spared and taken to the sword. Don’t mind if I am feeling harsh, but I have to because of T20 cricket, with the impact sub-rule, having a huge change, KKR were 10-15 runs short considering the start they had. They should have maybe 290-300 but as I said, the Kings pulled things back. But I have to praise the commitment of the PBKS top-order, completely washed away in the previous games, chasing 263 as if nothing happened. But for those aspiring to be bowlers and bowling-all-rounders, I would say not to give up on your journeys as this is the IPL, not international cricket, where the impact-sub rule doesn’t exist. Even in the IPL, I would say the pace bowlers to take inspiration from Bumrah, who is going below 10 over almost every game and for spinners I would say starts like Narine and Harpreet Brar, who continue to bowl match-winning spells for their respective teams. If you guys give up and change your profile to be a batter, then there won’t be any good bowlers in the IPL in the future and that 300-run barrier can be easily breached in this league… So overall, a six-hitting fest at Eden, as it holds the record for the maximum sixes hit in a T20 game and the bowlers again getting a huge thumping in a game in this season of IPL

So here we come to the end of the blog. The blog on the 4 weekend games, 2 of which are already done, will come tomorrow evening. So stay tuned!

Hello and a warm welcome to yet another blog on the daily match reviews on this year’s IPL. One of these 3 games was an absolute thriller, but the other two were one-sided affairs. So without any due, let’s get started!

Kolkata Knight Riders VS Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Faf du Plessis won the toss and opted to field first with RCB wearing their yearly green jersey under a scorching heat. Salt was off to a flyer but the RCB bowlers had their plans covered for Narine and got him early. But Salt had done much damage in the powerplay before he was dismissed. But Shreyas Iyer was at his best, with Rinku and Russell stitching crucial partnerships with him and Ramandeep finished strong, giving KKR 222, an excellent score. However, the RCB openers, filled with intent played superbly but fell shortly after, but Jacks and the king of Kolkata, Patidar were pelting the KKR spinners with ease and it looked like RCB would cruise through. But Russell and Narine changed things and picked up 4 wickets in 2 overs. Soon DK fell with RCB needing 21 off the last over, with no recognised batter left. But Karn Sharma, from nowhere smoked 3 sixes but Starc held his nerve to hand RCB a 1-run defeat, the most heartbreaking loss for RCB this season.
In another Eden thriller, RCB’s bowling looked composed for the first time this season and even though KKR hit 222, I feel this was a much better show from our bowlers. Still, again that luck factor went wrong thrice for us, one was Kohli’s no-ball, Russell getting out to a no-ball on the first ball he faced and the other was Narine’s no-ball to Lomror, by the barest of margins both were dismissed and it proved to be the turning points in the game. KKR got that 222 because of Salt’s start but failed to continue. I feel they should have capitalised on the middle overs and got 240. But the highlight for RCB was Karn Sharma hitting those sixes. This is the reward for every RCB fan, even though DK got out the previous over, watching the game and hoping a bowler could hit 3 sixes, but still ended up on the losing side. So I loved the fight our boys showed today against a mighty team, everyone pitching in, but the luck factor was completely not on our side. But still, we have a mathematical chance to go to the playoffs, and without any shame or disappointment, we will continue believing we can win the next 6 and have a chance to play in the playoffs. We have experienced this many times, but chin up and be positive as we play the Sunrisers at their den. So with that said, a thrilling game in which both teams threw in the middle but in the end, KKR won by a run, avenging the RR defeat and doing the double over RCB for the second year in a row.

Punjab Kings VS Gujarat Titans | Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium, Mullanpur
Sam Curran won the toss and opted to bat first in their last game at Mullanpur. Finally, the Kings’ openers were off to a flyer but the GT spinners were on point after the powerplay, which triggered a massive collapse, but Harpreet Brar’s quick-fire 29 gave the Kings a respectable total of 142. The Titans started well but lost the plot completely during the middle overs with Harshal and Livingstone pitching in important wickets. But the ice-man, Tewatia, guided his team comfortably over the line when things became difficult, giving the Titans a much-needed victory by 3 wickets.
In the last game at Mullanpur, the Kings’ openers finally had a good hit but yet again the other batters were dismissed cheaply. What made their batting look worse was Shashank and Ashutosh also fell cheaply by the GT spinners, especially Noor and Sai Kishore. But one thing I would want to point out is the performance of Harpreet Singh Bhatia, the Punjab state captain, was absolutely horrendous in the end, not giving Rabada strike, who showed he could hit the ball cleanly the last game, and refusing the singles. I felt the Kings left about 10 runs due to this, which cost them. Their bowling was good but GT were never completely out of the chase. Things started getting tricky but Tewatia, like always he does, finished yet another game for his team. So overall, a chaotic game with some poor batting from both sides, especially PBKS, who maybe could have used Shikhar as an impact player or used Atharva Taide instead of Harpreet Singh Bhatia, whose performance was beyond worse and made the difference between the two teams in the end…

Rajasthan Royals VS Mumbai Indians | Sawai Mansingh Stadium
Hardik Pandya won the toss and opted to bat first at the SMS. However, the innings started similarly to the way they played against RR in Mumbai, with the top order wiped out quickly but Tilak and Wadhera were brilliant, both getting 40+ scores and it looked like MI would finish with 200, but Hardik underperformed again, David had a rare failure due to some amazing bowling by Sandeep Sharma, who picked up a 5 wicket haul, restricting MI to 179. The RR openers were comfortable right from the start and some passing showers made it easier to bat on. Buttler fell but Jaiswal and Samson went strong and guided the Royals to their 7th victory, by 9 wickets, giving MI yet another thumping.
In another RR masterclass, the MI top-order perishing led to their downfall early on, and Hardik and David unable to give a strong finish to the batting almost sealed the game in the first half. The only problem for the Royals was Jaiswal’s form, which has been solved, with him getting a fabulous 100. So the Royals had a perfect game in my opinion, with Chahal reaching a massive milestone of 200 wickets, Sandeep Sharma in good touch as well as Boult getting a wicket in the opening over. MI need to regroup and come back strong after another thumping, with the main concern being Hardik’s form…

So hope you guys enjoyed this blog covering these 3 games. The next game is CSK v LSG, which is going to be an exciting one. I will catch up on that and see you soon!

Hello and a warm welcome to another blog on the match reviews of every game in this year’s IPL season. These 6 games were special because Thala played two great knocks, SRHvRCB classic at the Chinnaswamy, a dramatic game at the Eden Gardens and Mullanpur and much more drama. Again, this is going to be a huge blog, so get ready and let’s get started

Mumbai Indians VS Chennai Super Kings | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Hardik Pandya won the toss and elected to field first in the most important clash of IPL’s greatest teams. CSK started slowly and lost Rahane and Ravindra early but the young captain, Ruturaj ruled over Mumbai as he played some fantastic shots, along with local boy Dube got a superb fifty. But the real motivation for the CSK bowlers to defend the target, which was very difficult at the Wankhede was their Thala, who calmly walked, hit 3 sixes ran a 2, and walked back calmly as if nothing happened to give CSK a par score of 206. The MI openers once again were fantastic but when Ishan and SKY fell quickly, CSK had the upper hand but Rohit Sharma was at his best and supported well by Tilak Verma. At this stage, it was easily achievable but some quiet overs from Tushar and Shardul brought the game back to CSK. Pathirana handled the wicket-taking process, picking 4 of them and even though Rohit fought till the end and got a superb 100, it wasn’t enough as MI fell short, giving CSK a memorable win by 20 runs.
In an entertaining El-Classico, I had mentioned Ruturaj played some fantastic shots and Dube as well, both getting fifties but the rate was still below 10 but the finish by Thala, a man who is 42 years old, 5 years since his international retirement hits India’s vice-captain for 3 sixes in the first 3 balls he faced is simply incredible. In my opinion, he can easily play another year for CSK because he is still quick behind the stumps and in the batting, he should always have a role of playing a maximum of 10 balls and hitting about 30 runs to give the perfect finish, and I feel no one else can do it in the world except him. Those 4 balls he faced, nullified a great century by Rohit Sharma From finishing with a below-par total of about 195, he added those 10 runs, which was enough motivation for Pathirana and co to dismantle MI in their run chase. Wankhede is known for teams chasing totals but that knock from Dhoni ensured the CSK bowlers had first, 10 extra runs, and second the composure to defend a total at the Wankhede, which is almost impossible in the current T20 world. So overall an evenly poised game with great knocks from Gaikwad, Dube and Rohit Sharma but Dhoni’s 4-ball 20 made the difference and that is also exactly the margin of victory for CSK…

Royal Challengers Bengaluru VS Sunrisers Hyderabad | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru
Faf du Plessis won the toss and opted to field first on a classic Chinnaswamy track. The SRH openers made full use of it, with Travis Head scoring a super quick fifty and the openers guided SRH to their 100 in just the 7th over. RCB did pull some things back but Head was strong and notched up a superb 100. Once he fell, SRH were projected to hit about 260-270 but some brilliant hitting in the end from Klassen and Samad got SRH to the highest IPL score of all time, beating their previous record by 10 runs and posting a massive 287 on board. At this point, the game was effectively done but the RCB openers refused to give up as Kohli and Faf came out all guns blazing, but when Kohli fell, RCB started losing wickets and they needed 166 off the last 10 overs with half the side dismissed. But then came one of the best knocks by a veteran in the history of IPL which gave RCB an outside chance. It was DK, who smoked the SRH bowlers to every corner of the crowd and was well supported by Lomror. But Cummins picked Lomror and the innings slowed down, which RCB couldn’t afford. DK fought till the end and played a jaw-dropping 83, but SRH won the game comfortably by 25 runs.
In a record-breaking T20 game, the RCB bowlers again messed up their lengths and gave too many freebies to a star-studded SRH batting, who are playing a T20 form of bazball, which is to hit 250+ runs in an inning. Head was brilliant and Klassen supported him well. But the difference I would say came from the bat of Samad, who gave the Sunrisers 20 runs extra. But as an RCB fan, I was super happy that the batting didn’t crumble and lose by a big margin. I would say that Jack’s run-out was the real game-changer, so luck was again not on our side. But the knock played by DK was just unforgettable. A man who started commentating and playing such a knock also deserves a standing ovation, which he did reserved by the SRH fans as well. For the SRH bowling, again Cummins, similar to the MI game, was the game changer as he picked up key wickets so was Markande, who picked up the crucial wicket of Kohli. So overall, a nightmare of a day for the bowlers and I would say, even though RCB did lose the game by 25 runs, hitting 262 is in a way a huge score and in my opinion, it was a huge morale victory for RCB, as they did not crumble under the 287 and fought till the last man, and that fighting spirit will help even their bowlers to be motivated to put up a better show in their next game at the Eden Gardens, where the track will also be a belter. So RCB needs to win every game from now on to have a chance to play the playoffs. SRH are sitting pretty at the top-4, with 4 wins and 2 losses.

Kolkata Knight Riders VS Rajasthan Royals | Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Sanju Samson won the toss and opted to field first on a good batting surface at the Eden Gardens. RR were off to the perfect start by picking up Salt early, but they were put to the sword by Narine, who batted like a dream and notched up a surprising century, his first in his career, and some useful knocks from the talented Raghuvanshi and Rinku gave the Knight Riders a superb 223. the RR openers came out all guns blazing but Jaiswal and Samson fell shortly. Parag also came all guns blazing but when he fell, the RR middle-order crumbled but Buttler was on song. At one point RR needed more than 100 runs and was reduced to 121/6 but Buttler and Powell fought bravely, but when Powell fell, Buttler was all alone, but he still kept believing in himself, got the odd boundaries and won a heist for his team, upsetting the Knight Riders at their home ground and giving his team a memorable win by 2 wickets.
In another thrilling game played by the top 2 teams. The silver lining of the game for KKR was Sunil Narine, whose role was to play a short, but aggressive cameo at the start and give his team a headstart, but this man didn’t stop and from nowhere, he got a 100, an achievement which was almost impossible by him. The RR bowlers were getting hit but avoided KKR from hitting a total of 230-240. And KKR were perfect with the ball, with Sunil Narine again bowling a superb spell but magic man Jos Buttler, had other ideas. He kept his team in the hunt and pulled off a heist against a strong KKR unit at their home. So overall a a below-par effort by both teams in both departments but two knocks, one from Narine and the other by Buttler, made this clash an interesting and thrilling game at the Eden Gardens, but in the end, Buttler kept his composure and stole a win from the Knight Riders.

Gujarat Titans VS Delhi Capitals | Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
Delhi Capitals won the toss and opted to field first with Delhi going with just 3 foreign players the entire game. But the Delhi bowlers were rolling through the GT line-up from the start, the chief contributor being Mukesh Kumar, picking up 3 wickets. The only one to score a 30+ score was Rashid Khan as the Titans were knocked off for just 89. The Delhi batter didn’t have much to hit, so they came out all guns blazing, with Fraser McGurk, Hope, Porel and Pant contributing equally, hitting quick-fire 15+ scores to finish the game with 11 overs spare, giving a thumping to the Titans at home.
In a GT thumping at Ahmedabad, the Delhi bowlers didn’t put a foot wrong and the bowlers finally had an extremely good day in the IPL, which is rare. Pant was superb behind the stumps, with four dismissals. Credit to DC finishing the game by 9 overs as their NRR was hit by the KKR game and they brought it down in style, giving a shocking defeat to Shubman Gill and his men by 6 wickets.
(Nothing was interesting in this game, so this is the shortest preview so far)

Punjab Kings VS Mumbai Indians | Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium, Mullanpur
Sam Curran, the stand-in captain, won the toss and opted to field first on a sluggish surface at Mullanpur. MI lost Kishan early but SKY was smoking boundaries while Rohit gave him good company. When Rohit fell, Varma took over his role as SKY notched up a superb fifty and they were looking to score a 200+ score. But the Kings’ bowlers pulled things back and restricted MI to 192, still a huge total at this ground. And again the top order collapsed as the Kings tried to experiment, making Sam Curran open the batting but he failed and the Kings were reduced to 14/4. But again the heroes of PBKS, Shashank and Ashutosh gave their team an outside chance, but Shashank fell early and Bumrah was running through the batting. But Shashank and Brar put up a last stand and at a point, they just needed 28 off the last over. But Bumrah applied the pressure and Ashutosh threw his wicket, and so did Brar. The Kings still fought with Rabada hitting a six but were bowled out, again a heartbreaking loss, giving MI a good victory by 9 runs.
In another classic PBKS loss, SKY played a big role in the batting as those 78 runs were gold on this type of wicket. Maybe MI were 10 runs short because they could easily hit 200+ but still, they had a formidable total. And again the same story of the top-order failing and Shashank and Ashutosh had to save the game. But this game was too far to reach for both of them, but Ashutosh played a blinder of a knock, hitting 7 sixes. But Bumrah, the best bowler in the world undoubtedly, was again superb and even though he didn’t get a wicket in his last over, he just gave 3 runs. This put pressure on Ashutosh as he played a rash shot and lost his wicket. But I would want to appreciate the fighting spirit of the Kings because their number 11 batter did give them hope till the last over. So overall a comprehensive MI game for most of the part but Ashutosh played a blinder but Bumrah and Coetzee picked 3 wickets each and ensured MI did get a nervy win by 9 runs.

Lucknow Super Giants VS Chennai Super Kings | Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
KL Rahul won the toss and opted to field for a change in a sea of yellow at Lucknow. This proved to be a good decision as CSK lost Ravindra and Ruturaj early, but Rahane carried along with Jadeja, who was promoted to number 4. But since Rahane was gone, the innings faltered with CSK precariously placed by the 15th over. But Jadeja and Moeen played some good knocks and gave the perfect situation for Thala to finish, and so he did, in Thala style, hitting 28 runs in just 9 balls and giving CSK a respectable 176 on board. However, KL had other plans as he was at his absolute best, with he and de Kock notching a brilliant 100-run stand. de Kock struggled and CSK had an outside chance but Pooran, alongside his KLassy captain, finished the game quite comfortably by 8 wickets and with an over spare, giving the Super Giants a much-needed victory.

In a KLassy match, the CSK batters played a touch slower at a good batting surface at the Ekana. Krunal Pandya was the most influential bowler for KL as he picked up 2 key wickets. But Jadeja was superb and he and Moeen ensured that Dhoni had the perfect scenario to give a big finish, and like he always does, he did hit a superb 28. But still, CSK were short by about 10 runs as KL played some amazing shots and it looked like 176 was nothing at this track. It was supported by some poor fielding and some poor bowling by Jadeja, who had an off-day to give LSG a superb victory against a champion side. So overall, Thala’s knock was outplayed by the class of KL Rahul, who was creaming the ball and also played at a strike rate of 150+, a good sign for LSG moving into the tournament. But CSK can have their revenge against the Super Giants as the two teams meet again in their next game at CSK’s #Anbuden, Chepauk.

Delhi Capitals VS Sunrisers Hyderabad | Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi
Rishabh Pant won the toss and opted to field first in DC’s homecoming to the Arun Jaitley Stadium. However, they were received with boundaries on almost every ball by Head and Abhishek Sharma, both just cracking the Delhi bowling and gave Sunrisers 125/0 in the powerplay, the highest in any T20 ever played! But Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel pulled things back and at the halfway stage, SRH were played at 158/4. Shahbaz played a superb 59 and the Sunrisers yet again playing the T20 form of bazball, posted a huge 266. Prithvi Shaw also came out all guns blazing, but he and Warner fell shortly, but the extremely talented Fraser-McGurk and Porel were striking at about 16 per over. But when Fraser McGurk fell, the SRH bowlers pulled things back, with Natarajan and Cummins being the chief architects and gave the Sunrisers a huge victory by 67, bowling out the Capitals for 199.
In yet another SRH entertainer, Head and Abhishek played cricket as if they played a mobile game but credit to DC for pulling things back as 320 looked certain after the powerplay. Even the Delhi batters were superb, especially Fraser-McGurk, who has had a dream start to his IPL career but the SRH bowlers today were superb after Fraser-McGurk fell, as Stubbs and Pant struggled because the SRH bowlers smartly bowled some cutters and slower ones. So a match in which Delhi could have won changed completely because of Fraser-McGurk’s wicket, giving SRH a comprehensive win. The other positive for SRH is Shahbaz’s role with the bat, he was superb and played a superb rearguard to help his team not collapse in the middle, supported well by Nitish Reddy. So overall DC have been given their second beating of the season and their bowlers need to fire up as soon as possible to get them back on track.

So hope you all enjoyed these two huge blogs, from now on, I will be regularly putting a blog every day since my travel is over. So hope you enjoyed this blog and I will catch you in the next one. Until then, goodbye!