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It is official that we have just witnessed a blitzkrieg of SRH’s bowlers at the hands of a colossal sea monster. That is how it felt when Pollard, with that bazooka of a bat, went hammer and tongs at Perera and company. It was no doubt a riveting contest between two good sides, but Pollard’s pyrotechnics just took the wind out of SRH’s sails.
Snapshots from today’s game:
Lightning fast outfield and a batting paradise
As a keen cricket observer, I sometimes have sympathy for bowlers. It is almost improbable to bowl to the likes of Gayle and Pollard when the track is a batting paradise and the outfield is lightning quick. On such tracks, it feels like the likes of Pollard and Gayle are playing with kids.
SRH’s batsmen fire for once
Batting has never been SRH’s forte. But today, they made a good fist of it. Both openers played a good hand. Dhawan is certainly the fulcrum of SRH’s batting line-up. The captain, White, put finishing touches to it with his pyrotechnics. White is one of the cleanest strikers of the ball going around. On the downside, he doesn’t have a wide range of strokes. Cameron White in red-hot form, though, can cause some headaches to the opposition. Those who witnessed White’s dazzling knock of 141 not out against Worcestershire in a T20 match in ’06 won’t forget it in a hurry.
Dinesh Karthik needs to have a glance at the rule book
Maybe it is time for Karthik to go through cricket’s rule book, as in spite of taking the ball on one bounce, he appealed for a catch. This is not to take a dig at Karthik, but why waste everyone’s precious time by appealing for a catch when it isn’t out?
Steyn – Deserves an award for bowling the perfect delivery of IPL 6
I just can’t stop praising Steyn, as he is simply outstanding. The banana-bending swing bowler continues to make batsmen dance to his swinging tunes. Dwayne Smith seemed to be on prayers when Steyn bowled those spine-chilling outswingers to him. He also bowled a peach of a delivery to the marauding Pollard. How on earth can a batsman play a delivery that slants into the batsman, before it virtually snakes away from him late, at high speed? The delivery he bowled to Pollard was akin to a tragic tale of Greek hero, as in spite of bowling the perfect ball, he didn’t find the edge. Steyn blends insouciance with geometric precision as a bowler.
Pollard’s blitzkrieg
After today’s game, Perara must feel like he has been hit by a 440-volt willow shock, as every time he bowled, the ball kept disappearing out of the park. When Pollard was batting, aeroplanes seemed to be constantly flying over spectators. Pollard’s coup de main was such that except for Steyn, the rest of the bowlers were in a state of demoralized- daze. It isn’t right to criticise bowlers here, as when the giant from Jamaica is in a belligerent mood, not many can stop him from causing mayhem. Today, Pollard just shell-shocked SRH out of Mumbai.
SRH’s players must be in a state of shock, as with four overs to go, it seemed like they were in the ascendancy. MI continue to hinge their hopes on a power-packed middle-order, but they need their top-order to play more aggressively. One can’t expect the middle-order to bail them out of choppy waters everytime.
