The Sunrisers Hyderabad finally broke the chain of unbearable losses in the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League against the Punjab Kings.
Chasing a score of mere 121 runs, the ever so powerful top order comprising David Warner, Jonny Bairstow and Kane Williamson made light work of the chase and helped the team to get 0ff to a steady start.
The batting crisis that has started to appear in the Punjab Kings setup did not relent in their fourth game of the season as well.
They were hurt badly by the Sunrisers bowling attack that finally came to terms with the potential and expectations made of them before the commencement of the IPL this year.
They suffered a setback when Bhuvneshwar Kumar walked off the field after bowling only three overs but the new additions from the last few games such as Abhishek Sharma and Khaleel Ahmed put their hands up to restrict the Kings.
Here, we’ll decipher the best and the worst performances of the game between the Sunrisers and the Kings in Chennai.
Hits
Abhishek Sharma
Before the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League, Abhishek Sharma was in superb form both with the bat and the ball in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy held earlier this year. However, the presence of international all-rounders meant that the lad from Punjab had to miss out on the first few games.
The result of the first three games did not go the Sunrisers way and they were forced to have a look in on Abhishek Sharma in hope of finding a perfect balance in the playing XI.
Sharma, too, did not come to his best in the first game and perished. The second chance he got from the team against the Kings was his chase to step up and justify the backings.
David Warner trusted him to start with the new ball against the two right-handers from the Kings and move almost paid a dividend but Rashid Khan dropped a tough chance. After a solitary over, he was held back as Chris Gayle came out to bat.
He was brought back in the 10th over when the Kings had another right-handed pair in the middle. He started well again and conceded only six runs from the second over.
Finally, after a long wait, his persistence and accuracy were rewarded as Deepak Hooda was caught back in the crease in order to force the issue. He coaxed Hooda into playing a shot from the backfoot after failing in attempts of sweeping.
A success forced Warner to keep him in the attack and after conceding a four to Moises Henriques, he flummoxed another right-hander, but now with a flighted delivery that turned away from the batsman.
A bowling figure of 4-0-24-2 was good enough to establish his credentials as a left-arm spinner while also repudiating his critics who doubt if he can deliver a four-over spell every game.
Jonny Bairstow
Jonny Bairstow has been the lone shining light for the Sunrisers Hyderabad albeit the team was having a tough time so far in the tournament. Hence, when the Sunrises back from a hattrick of losses, it was Bairstow who led the charge to win them the game.
The bowling did play their role admirably after the games where they let the other team reach defendable scores. The batting order did not have a mountain to climb, but they had to get off to a good start to calm the nerves as when a side starts losing games they should have won, the habit of losing creeps in the system.
Bairstow attacked from the outset whenever he was offered the chance to get at the top of the bowling line up. Left-arm spinner Fabian Allen offered him width and length to go over the top and Bairstow were up and running in the chase. He corrected his line but length provided Bairstow to get under it once again and the Sunrisers were on charge.
There was no let-up this time from him and he remained not out to lead the Sunrisers to a big win over the Kings. Bairstow has been in good form coming into the IPL and he is making sure to utilise it to maximum advantage for the Sunrisers.
On the day against the Punjab Kings, Bairstow needed to make sure the wickets were not falling from one end while also ensuring that a manageable required run rate to not get out of their hands. He batted beautifully, mixing aggression with a cautious approach to deny the Kings any chance to come back in the game.
Khaleel Ahmed
Khaleel Ahmed was brought in the team for an impressive T Natarajan, who has been excluded from the team on account of fitness. Hence, Ahmad was battling to keep his place in the team along with justifying his presence in the team.
Ahmed had a terrible season last year and could feature only in eight games. The pressure could well have been daunting but the left arm came back with flying colours in the game the Kings.
However, the start was not good and both Mayank Agarwal and Chris Gayle had punished him for poor balls before Rashid Khan helped him with a big wicket of Agarwal.
He bowled two overs in his first spell and took the big wicket of Agarwal along with giving away only 13 runs.
Warner kept two of his overs in the bank for the end overs and he offered his captain a chance to justify his own call by forcing a false shot from Fabian Allen.
He came back to his fourth over and sent back Shahrukh Khan, who has turned out to be a rescue man for the Kings over the last few games. Shahrukh was in the mood to do what Kieron Pollard did against the Sunriesers by getting his side to a score that they could dare to defend.
However, Khaleel was better than him and deceived him with a straighter slower one.
He could well face an exit door if the move to exclude Natarajan is really related to his fitness and not performance. But, Khaleel has done enough to stake claim to his place in the playing XI.
Flops
KL Rahul
KL Rahul has had a torrid time coming into the ongoing edition of the IPL but the first game showed signs that he was behind his struggles. He was not proactive with the bat but he managed to finish the game strong with the bat against the Rajasthan Royals.
Then, bowlers stood up in pressure situations to defend a big score and both the Kings and Rahul himself were up and running.
Rahul has been criticised for not showing intent with the bat and stats back the claim that his lack of appetite for risk for greater results has cost the Kings few games. Worryingly, for the Kings, he was batting with docile intent in Mumbai where teams have needed as many as they could get.
His method would have worked perfectly in Chennai where teams have often needed an anchor who could hold one end up while others go for glory shots. However, he fell victim to enforcing the issue on a pitch that was not allowing balls to bounce higher.
A dragged on pull shot found the field and Rahul failed to adapt to the conditions at the Chepauk and played right into the hands of the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
KL Rahul needs to sort his head out before the next game and the Kings management should make him realise the key to running successful campaigns is adaptability, which both he and the team lacked big time against the Sunrisers.
Chris Gayle
Chris Gayle has not been able to come to the party in the 14th edition of the IPL and he is one of the prime concerns the Kings have found himself in the bubble of uncertainty.
He has been assigned the task of leading the batting group from the number three position in the league to resurrect the Kings in case of failure of either Rahul or Agarwal. However, apart from one game, his bat has gone silent and so is the consistency of the Kings batting order.
The batting order that has the trio of Rahul, Gayle and Agarwal has suffered two collapses out of four games this season while in another game against the Capitals, they could not capitalise on a good start by Agarwal.
Against the Sunrisers, the early wicket of Rahul put the responsibility for taking the Kings to a defensible position but Gayle fell victim to the mastery of Rashid Khan. His wicket broke the back of Kings and the failure of other batsmen from the other end made sure they were always short of any chance of challenging the mighty top order of the Sunrisers.
The Sunrisers will be ecstatic to get off the habit of losing with a clinical performance while on the other hand, the Kings will have to relook their tactics on slow and low pitches in Chennai.
The Kings management needs to address the role of different players and make sure they should be aware of their responsibilities towards the team on the field. At the moment, the Kings are failing to play as a collective unit and the results are telling for them and everyone to see.