Tennis at both ends, and a football interception
Plays of the day from Kings XI Punjab's first victory of the season, against Rising Pune Supergiants in Mohali
Karthik Krishnaswamy
17-Apr-2016
MS Dhoni was not to be outdone in the 'proficiency in other sports' stakes, denying Manan Vohra a run with a quick interception • BCCI
The scoops
Faf du Plessis loves to go down on one knee and scoop the ball over his shoulder. Occasionally, when the bowlers shift their line wider to combat this shot, his quick hands allow him to change his grip and hit the same shot towards third man. The shot made its first appearance in the fifth over of the Rising Pune Supergiants innings, when he went across the stumps to Sandeep Sharma and scooped him high over the keeper for four. Then, against the quicker Kyle Abbott in the eighth over, his execution failed him against one that was dug in shorter, but his team got four runs anyway as the ball ricocheted off his right shoulder to the third-man boundary. Abbott's next ball was also short, and this time du Plessis was expecting it - he did not crouch as low as he usually does, and that allowed him to stay more or less level with the ball and help it away to the fine-leg boundary.
Faf du Plessis loves to go down on one knee and scoop the ball over his shoulder. Occasionally, when the bowlers shift their line wider to combat this shot, his quick hands allow him to change his grip and hit the same shot towards third man. The shot made its first appearance in the fifth over of the Rising Pune Supergiants innings, when he went across the stumps to Sandeep Sharma and scooped him high over the keeper for four. Then, against the quicker Kyle Abbott in the eighth over, his execution failed him against one that was dug in shorter, but his team got four runs anyway as the ball ricocheted off his right shoulder to the third-man boundary. Abbott's next ball was also short, and this time du Plessis was expecting it - he did not crouch as low as he usually does, and that allowed him to stay more or less level with the ball and help it away to the fine-leg boundary.
Tennis at both ends
Du Plessis' Twitter bio reveals he is the co-owner of the Bjorn Borg apparel label in South Africa, and on Sunday he was batting with a Bjorn Borg sticker on his bat. But the tennis shot came from the other end, when, in the 17th over of the Supergiants innings, Kyle Abbott bowled Steven Smith a slower bouncer. Smith waited on it and swatted it down the ground, his bat coming down almost vertically on the ball in a manner not unlike a forehand smash.
Du Plessis' Twitter bio reveals he is the co-owner of the Bjorn Borg apparel label in South Africa, and on Sunday he was batting with a Bjorn Borg sticker on his bat. But the tennis shot came from the other end, when, in the 17th over of the Supergiants innings, Kyle Abbott bowled Steven Smith a slower bouncer. Smith waited on it and swatted it down the ground, his bat coming down almost vertically on the ball in a manner not unlike a forehand smash.
Dhoni's football interception
MS Dhoni was not to be outdone by his team-mates in the proficiency in other sports stakes. Dhoni, famously, was a goalkeeper before he became a wicketkeeper, but the bit of skill he showed off in the ninth over of Kings XI's innings was more in line with a defensive midfielder reading the play and using his reach to intercept a sneaky through-ball. Manan Vohra went deep in his crease and played a late dab off the left-arm spinner Ankit Sharma. He was about to take off for a single, expecting the ball to go towards short third man, but stopped himself just in time, spotting Dhoni lifting his right leg almost parallel to the ground to stop the ball with his pad.
MS Dhoni was not to be outdone by his team-mates in the proficiency in other sports stakes. Dhoni, famously, was a goalkeeper before he became a wicketkeeper, but the bit of skill he showed off in the ninth over of Kings XI's innings was more in line with a defensive midfielder reading the play and using his reach to intercept a sneaky through-ball. Manan Vohra went deep in his crease and played a late dab off the left-arm spinner Ankit Sharma. He was about to take off for a single, expecting the ball to go towards short third man, but stopped himself just in time, spotting Dhoni lifting his right leg almost parallel to the ground to stop the ball with his pad.
The knuckle-ball
Zaheer Khan lit up the 2011 World Cup with a new variant of the slower delivery, folding his fingers behind the ball to flummox the batsmen with dip and lack of pace. Unlike a lot of other innovations, the knuckle ball did not spread far and wide, and has almost disappeared from world cricket since that tournament. It reappeared, out of the blue, in the tenth over of Kings XI's innings, when Irfan Pathan sent one down to M Vijay. Slow-motion replays confirmed it was the knuckle ball, but Vijay played it without too much discomfort, waiting on it and clipping it neatly through midwicket. Irfan did not get any further opportunity to showcase this delivery, with Dhoni only giving him the one over.
Zaheer Khan lit up the 2011 World Cup with a new variant of the slower delivery, folding his fingers behind the ball to flummox the batsmen with dip and lack of pace. Unlike a lot of other innovations, the knuckle ball did not spread far and wide, and has almost disappeared from world cricket since that tournament. It reappeared, out of the blue, in the tenth over of Kings XI's innings, when Irfan Pathan sent one down to M Vijay. Slow-motion replays confirmed it was the knuckle ball, but Vijay played it without too much discomfort, waiting on it and clipping it neatly through midwicket. Irfan did not get any further opportunity to showcase this delivery, with Dhoni only giving him the one over.
Karthik Krishnaswamy is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo