Magical Balaji seizes the day for Kolkata

"Balaji zara dheere chalo!" was the cry in 2004 when he charmed the Pakistan public with his skill and smile. Years later, post a career-threatening back problem, both the traits were visible tonight and the Eden Gardens lapped it up in delight.

Balaji produced a magical delivery to knock out the dangerous Shane Watson in his first spell before he returned to torpedo the lower order. The delivery that took out Watson was one of the best, if not the best, delivery bowled this IPL. It landed on the good length around the middle stump line and jagged away sharply past the waft to hit the top of the off stump. Balaji screamed, his team-mates were delirious, and the crowd roared; everyone knew the importance of Watson's dismissal, accentuated even more by the absence of Rahul Dravid and Johan Botha in the line-up.

Buoyed by Balaji's feat, a charged-up Kolkata applied the squeeze with discipline in bowling and desperation in the field. The middle-order collapsed and the final two recognised batting pair were at the crease when Balaji returned for his second spell.

He produced an incutter to bowl Ajinkya Rahane and surprised Ashok Menaria with a short ball, which was upper cut straight to third man. With the fall of those two batsmen, Rajasthan had nowhere to go and they collapsed to be shot out for 81.