PBKS ace another 200-plus chase courtesy Arya, Prabhsimran and Iyer
Shashank was the unlikely hero with the ball, stalling SRH after a blistering opening stand from Abhishek and Head
Shashank was the unlikely hero with the ball, stalling SRH after a blistering opening stand from Abhishek and Head
Scorer: Ranjith P | Commentator: Abhijato (@ob_jato)
7.30pm And finally, we're done with what has been a high-scoring, topsy-turvy contest! Shreyas Iyer led from the front today, and PBKS are looking like early favourites this season. It's too early to tell, but their openers and diverse bowling attack might spearhead a formidable campaign. It's too soon to tell, of course, just as it is with the struggling SRH, who need to get a better sense of how to approach their bowling plans. For now, there's plenty of food for thought for both teams - and another contest for us to zoom towards. Go and follow along CSK vs DC. From Sudeep, Ranjith, Ekanth and I at ESPNcricinfo, bye-bye for now!
And now the post-match presentation.
Shreyas Iyer - PBKS captain, and Player of the Match! He speaks now: "Firstly, we've got a phenomenal start. When you're chasing 220, you need that start. Pleasing to the eye, proper cricketing shots. Steadied the rhythm at the start. Not easy, but maintaining that momentum - I needed to give myself time. Once I gauged the pace of the pitch... [After SRH's start] All of us came together, and Shashank approached me, give me an over. Ricky came and asked me, what's your thought? I said I'll go with Shashank - I need someone to take the pace off. He lived up to his expectations, he lived up to what he said, kudos to him... At the end of the day, we all know we've got the skills. We need a strong mindset when we go for such chases. Openers have been flowing throughout, they don't need to curb their instincts. Others, who set their platforms from ball one, it's easy for us to rotate strike and go according to run rate. Overall, we've been magnificent with our work ethic. All players worked their... bodies off [he had a different word in mind initially, he laughs!]. Work: they're delivering on the field. I keep reiterating every now and then, you have to be in the present. Ricky [Ponting] also takes a lot of importance in this aspect. Even last year, we came so close to winning the trophy. This year, we want to lift it. It will take a lot of effort to envision that."
Brad Haddin, assistant coaching for PBKS, has the mic now: "I'm glad I'm not a bowler in the first six overs... The one thing we did really well after those first six was we stayed calm, got the game back. The middle overs... That's where it was won. Ricky spoke to the players: they know their plans, and just stay calm. Things might be bubbling up, but you know your plans. If you get a chance, you pounce on it, like they did here. It's interesting to talk to batters about rotating strike - they say we don't need to that anymore, we just put it in the second tier. They need to keep their courage and be brave in the first six covers, we're very clear about our bowlers getting wickets... We've seen that in the game against Kolkata, against Finn and Green. The mindset is to get wickets, not be defensive."
Ishan Kishan, the losing captain, wears a disappointed look: "We could have ended with a total of 250, the way we started... At the same time, they batted well in the beginning. At the same time, we were not so good with the execution - in T20 cricket, the most important thing is the execution of your good balls. 190 is a par score here, we could have had 240 here. But 220 was a great total. We had six or seven bowlers. It showed in their batting that it was easier scoring runs for them. I think in today's age, you don't have to plan much - you just do ahead of the game. You know which batter hits where. When you don't execute balls, you have nothing - you just end up giving 10-20 runs. [On their 200-plus totals not being safe] No, to be honest, we don't think so much. It's simple cricket. Your bowlers have a total, you try to defend. If you don't bowl in the right areas, you don't stop runs in the middle."
7.15pm Shreyas Iyer has put up his hand, and how. Just like SRH struggled after their boshing openers got out, PBKS too lose their half-centurions in quick succession. But Iyer ensured that a slowdown in the chase never happened. He's taken them over the line in a high-scoring contest, and his team have laid down the marker for how to chase 200-plus totals in this IPL. SRH's bowling was quite poor, in all fairness, offering up slot balls even as they tried to land the yorkers. Great chase, and plenty of lessons for both teams, you'd imagine!
Mahesh: "publishing all content-less comments but leaving out mine. Klaasen's slow innings is the difference here! at least 20 runs" - Well, when you have boggling revelations like these...
Shashank was the unlikely hero with the ball, stalling SRH after a blistering opening stand from Abhishek and Head
SRH left out Livingstone, Unadkat while PBKS remained effectively unchanged
At one point, SRH looked on track for 250 before Shashank Singh stepped in with the ball to turn things around
After making 209 look like 20 short against CSK last week, they chase down 220 with seven balls to spare
The Punjab Kings fast bowler is focusing on constantly improving his game, with variations and a team-first mindset