Gambhir stars in the mix-up menace, and Gayle strikes back
Plays of the day from the match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens
Vishal Dikshit
16-May-2016
Iqbal Abdulla made an impact right away for Royal Challengers Bangalore with a sharp caught and bowled • BCCI
The mix-up menace
Manish Pandey and Gautam Gambhir had upped the scoring after Robin Uthappa's wicket, building a threatening stand. But a total co-ordination failure occurred when Chris Jordan came into the attack. Pandey slapped the last ball of the eighth over to mid-off and set off for a quick single even as Gambhir was ball watching. With his back to Pandey, Gambhir had edged along to nearly the halfway mark, then took two steps backwards when Pandey had almost crossed him. When Gambhir saw Yuzvendra Chahal had thrown the ball to the non-striker's end, he changed his mind again and charged to the striker's end. Pandey put in a last-minute, full-length dive at the non-striker's end just before Jordan collected and broke the stumps. Seeing that it was too close to call, Jordan turned around and tried to catch Gambhir short but the batsman had reached the striker's end safely by then. Chaos reigned but disaster was averted for Knight Riders.
Manish Pandey and Gautam Gambhir had upped the scoring after Robin Uthappa's wicket, building a threatening stand. But a total co-ordination failure occurred when Chris Jordan came into the attack. Pandey slapped the last ball of the eighth over to mid-off and set off for a quick single even as Gambhir was ball watching. With his back to Pandey, Gambhir had edged along to nearly the halfway mark, then took two steps backwards when Pandey had almost crossed him. When Gambhir saw Yuzvendra Chahal had thrown the ball to the non-striker's end, he changed his mind again and charged to the striker's end. Pandey put in a last-minute, full-length dive at the non-striker's end just before Jordan collected and broke the stumps. Seeing that it was too close to call, Jordan turned around and tried to catch Gambhir short but the batsman had reached the striker's end safely by then. Chaos reigned but disaster was averted for Knight Riders.
Gayle strikes back
Chris Gayle, who had been out of form, was mic'd up in the second over of the match. The television commentators asked him about his patchy form and he didn't shy away from making a prophecy. "I'm fairly overdue by now, so why not fire tonight, eh?" he said. "I think the universe boss is allowed to have a few failures, so why not return tonight?" For a batsman whose last few scores read 6, 5, 7, 0, 1, 4, 5 and 4, that was some confidence. Gayle walked the talk in the chase; five fours and three sixes placed him on 42 off 24 after the Powerplay. He couldn't get to a fifty, but Royal Challengers must be happy with 49 off 31.
Chris Gayle, who had been out of form, was mic'd up in the second over of the match. The television commentators asked him about his patchy form and he didn't shy away from making a prophecy. "I'm fairly overdue by now, so why not fire tonight, eh?" he said. "I think the universe boss is allowed to have a few failures, so why not return tonight?" For a batsman whose last few scores read 6, 5, 7, 0, 1, 4, 5 and 4, that was some confidence. Gayle walked the talk in the chase; five fours and three sixes placed him on 42 off 24 after the Powerplay. He couldn't get to a fifty, but Royal Challengers must be happy with 49 off 31.
The return of Abdulla
Because Royal Challengers were sixth place on the points table and bowling had been their weak link so far, they brought in an extra spinner - Iqbal Abdulla - for Varun Aaron in Kolkata. On a pitch with prominent cracks, captain Virat Kohli brought Abdulla on in the third over, and Abdulla didn't disappoint. He got in a loud appeal for lbw first ball, when Robin Uthappa missed a reverse sweep and was struck just outside the off-stump line. Second ball, Uthappa looked to turn a more flighted delivery to leg but edged it back towards Abdulla's left and the left-arm spinner dived to complete a one-hand catch. Abdulla, who was wicketless in his previous three games, had broken the prolific opening partnership of Knight Riders.
Because Royal Challengers were sixth place on the points table and bowling had been their weak link so far, they brought in an extra spinner - Iqbal Abdulla - for Varun Aaron in Kolkata. On a pitch with prominent cracks, captain Virat Kohli brought Abdulla on in the third over, and Abdulla didn't disappoint. He got in a loud appeal for lbw first ball, when Robin Uthappa missed a reverse sweep and was struck just outside the off-stump line. Second ball, Uthappa looked to turn a more flighted delivery to leg but edged it back towards Abdulla's left and the left-arm spinner dived to complete a one-hand catch. Abdulla, who was wicketless in his previous three games, had broken the prolific opening partnership of Knight Riders.
Jordan hits the blockhole
Chris Jordan had impressed many with his bowling in the slog overs during the World T20 recently, and he was given the same job on Monday night. He started the 19th over with a pin-point yorker that threw Shakib Al Hasan off balance. It was fired in right on the leg stump, and Shakib was flat on the ground in no time. Andre Russell, who was at the other end, had already been floored by a Mustafizur Rahman yorker earlier in the tournament, and he wasn't spared by Jordan either. Four balls later Russell took strike and crouched early in an attempt to confuse Jordan, but the fast bowler had his plans in place. Just when Russell straightened up again, Jordan's yorker found its way near Russell's back foot; though the batsman managed to dig it out, he was left fumbling on all fours as well.
Chris Jordan had impressed many with his bowling in the slog overs during the World T20 recently, and he was given the same job on Monday night. He started the 19th over with a pin-point yorker that threw Shakib Al Hasan off balance. It was fired in right on the leg stump, and Shakib was flat on the ground in no time. Andre Russell, who was at the other end, had already been floored by a Mustafizur Rahman yorker earlier in the tournament, and he wasn't spared by Jordan either. Four balls later Russell took strike and crouched early in an attempt to confuse Jordan, but the fast bowler had his plans in place. Just when Russell straightened up again, Jordan's yorker found its way near Russell's back foot; though the batsman managed to dig it out, he was left fumbling on all fours as well.
Vishal Dikshit is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo