Yes, it was that time in the series when the trophy was claimed by one of the two finalists – either the Deccan Chargers (DC), or the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). We all know who it was in the end, but to know just how they did it, read on!
The RCB won the toss and decided to field first. Skipper Adam Gilchrist (Gilly) and Herschelle Gibbs opened batting, while – keeping in mind Gilly’s performance in the semis – skipper of the RCB, Anil Kumble, decided to lead by example and took it upon himself to dismiss Gilly. And what do you know – he did! Thus, skipper dismissed skipper; that too without Gilly’s having made even a single run! Tirumalasetti Suman came in at one down, but was sent back to the bench by R. Vinay Kumar (catch Manish Pandey) after making 10 runs off 11 balls.
Andrew Symonds came in after Suman. Rahul Dravid, who is a fantastic catcher of the ball, dropped Symonds when he was batting at five! Symonds eventually did get out, but it was after he had made 33 runs off 21 balls. The man responsible for the dismissal was Kumble once again, who bowled him out. Rohit Sharma came in next. At the end of 10 overs, the DC were at 62-3. Sharma played a good innings, but got out after making 24 runs off 23 balls – the bowler, once again, being Kumble (catch Pandey).
Venugopal Rao came in next, but he was dismissed on a duck by Kumble again – the fielder this time being Ross Taylor. Azhar Bilakhia came in next, but was LBWed by V. Kumar after making only six runs. This wicket fell in the 20th over, and Ryan Harris came in for the last few balls. Thus, the DC ended at a very ‘gettable’ score of 143-6, with Gibbs at 53/48 (his fourth IPL 50) not out, and Harris at 9/5 not out.
Jacques Kallis and Pandey opened batting for the RCB, while Harris bowled the first over, in which he conceded only one run to the opposition. The next two overs were uneventful, but in the fourth over, R. P. Singh bowled out Kallis after the latter had made 15 runs off 17 balls. Roelof van de Merwe came in at one down. The second wicket – that of Pandey – fell in the seventh over, after he had made four runs off eight balls. Pandey was caught behind the wicket on a ball by Pragyan Ojha. Rahul Dravid was the next batsman in.
The third wicket which fell was that of Merwe, who was stumped out by Gilly on a ball by Ojha. Merwe had made 32 runs off 21 balls by then. Ross Taylor came in after Merwe’s dismissal, which took place in the ninth over. Funnily enough, after nine overs, both the teams were at the same score – 59-3. After 10 overs, though, while the DC had been at 62-3, the RCB ended at 69-3. The fourth wicket, and probably one of the biggest blows dealt to the RCB, was that of Dravid, who was bowled out by Harmeet Singh after making nine runs off 13 balls. Virat Kohli came in next.
Taylor, on whom a lot of hopes were pinned, got out on a ball by Symonds (catch Rao) when he was batting at 27 runs. Mark Boucher came in next at the non-striker’s end. At the striker’s end was Kohli, who was also dismissed by Symonds (stumping Gilly). Thus, Robin Uthappa came in and faced Symonds’ hat trick ball! However, he didn’t get out. By now, the RCB were six down. The seventh wicket fell, claiming Boucher, who got out on a ball by Harmeet (catch Gibbs) after he’d made five runs off six balls.
V. kumar came in next. After making eight runs off eight balls, he was sent packing by Harris (beautiful catch by Harmeet!). Skipper Kumble came in next, looking desolate, because he knew what was going to happen. The second last over was bowled by Harris, and Uthappa hit him for a couple of big boundaries; for a moment it looked as if the RCB would make it. But the last over was bowled by none other than the holder of the purple cap, R. P., and he delivered a fantastic few dot balls, as a result of which, the RCB lost the match by a mere six runs!
It was a great match, truly worthy of being called a ‘final’, where either team could have won. After the game, and after an ecstatic Gilly and team departed to the dressing room, a fantastic show – which included performances by Katrina Kaif, Eddy Grant, Akon, a fabulous fire and drum show, and dance performances by Shiamak Davar’s troupe – was held to mark the official close of IPL season 2. After the fabulous show, during which the ‘Miss IPL’ was also declared (a certain Dune Kozzats), the prizes for the match (and the entire series) were given out. The DLF Maximum award for the match was given to Merwe, while the Man of the Match was given to Anil Kumble – in spite of being from the losing side – for his unbelievable four wickets in four overs.
Other prizes that were given were:
Under 23 Success of the League – Rohit Sharma
Leading Run Scorer (Orange cap) – Mathew Hayden
Leading Wicket Taker (Purple cap) – R. P. Singh
Fair Play award – King’s XI Punjab (KXIP), and
Golden Player of the League – Adam Gilchrist
After all the awards were given out, the victorious DC team posed for photographs with the prestigious IPL trophy, leaving us, the audience, waiting eagerly for the next season, which will , we hope, be held where it truly belongs – in India!
Deccan Chargers, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab are all locked at 14 points each. The winner of the RCB-DC match on Thursday will go to 16 points and the loser will remain on 14 with Punjab. But in all likeliness, Punjab will lose out on the semifinal berth owing to their poor net run rate. Currently Deccan has the best run rate at +0.265, while RCB are at -0.253 and Punjab at -0.483.
So if there is any chance of Punjab making it to the semis it will have to be a thrashing for Bangalore at the hands of Chargers. But chances are very remote and let us see why. To qualify, Bangalore need to have a net run rate higher than -0.483 after tomorrow’s match. So, let us check some possibilities.
The calculations done here are rough and may not be accurate to decimals.
Case Scenario 1 – Chargers bat first
Chargers’ Score
For Punjab to qualify, Bangalore must score less than
100
32
120
52
140
72
160
92
180
112
Case Scenario 2 – Bangalore bat first
Bangalore’s Score
For Punjab to qualify, Chargers need to win in
100
11.0 overs or less
120
11.1 overs or less
140
11.2 overs or less
160
10.0 overs or less
180
10.1 overs or less
What do you think are Punjab’s chances of qualifying?
That’s right. The Delhi Daredevils (DD), who have lost hardly any matches this season – the ones they did lose being close ones – lost the match against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), who literally cruised to victory!
The DD won the toss and decided to bat first, their openers being the duo of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, while Praveen Kumar opened the bowling attack. Right from the word ‘go’, the action was on. After just one run on the board, Sehwag got out (catch Ross Taylor), and the DD stood at 1-1. Mithun Manhas replaced Sehwag, but he got out after two deliveries without making any runs (catch Jacques Kallis). The scoreboard now read 1-2. AB de Villiers came in next.
After losing two quick wickets, the DD tried to put up some runs on the board, but, in the sixth over, Gambhir got out on a ball by Kallis (catch Taylor) after making only 27 runs, thus putting an end to a fledgling partnership. Dinesh Karthik was the next man in, and at the end of 10 overs, the DD stood at 63-3. After the Strategic Time Out, however, immediately in the 11th over, the fourth wicket, that of Villiers, fell, as he was bowled out by Roelof vd Merwe after he had made 28 runs off 29 balls. Andrew McDonald, who was playing the first match of this season, came in next, but got out on a ball by Anil Kumble after making only three runs.
Yogesh Nagar was the next man to walk on to the field. He made a decent score of 20 runs off 20 balls, but then was caught out by Robin Uthappa on a ball by Kumble. Farveez Maharoof came in next. While Nagar’s wicket fell in the 17th over, the next wicket, i.e., the seventh wicket, that of Karthik, fell in the 18th over after he had made 31 runs off 29 balls (ball Kumar, catch Uthappa).
Daniel Vettori came in after Karthik’s dismissal, and was dropped by Uthappa in the 20th over. Not only that, but Uthappa also overthrew the ball, resulting in three extra runs for the DD. Thus, at the end of 20 overs, the DD made 134-7, with Maharoof and Vettori at 18 and four runs not out, respectively.
The RCB opened batting with Kallis and Uthappa, while Ashish Nehra opened bowling. However, in the very first over, Uthappa lost his wicket after making merely one run off five balls, as he was caught behind the wicket. Rahul Dravid came in next. Between them, Kallis and Dravid did build a partnership, but not too many runs had come off it. Finally, in the 13th over, the partnership was broken when Dravid got out. He had made 38 runs off 34 balls before he was caught and bowled by Nagar.
Ross Taylor came in next, and in the very same over, got a Free Hit. However, he managed to make only one run off it. Then, in the 15th over, Taylor got out on a ball by Nagar – which was caught by Vettori – after making 25 runs off only 12 balls. Mark Boucher was the next batsman in. In the second last over, Kallis got a Free Hit, off which he made just one run. However, during the course of his innings, he made a half century – his fifth in the IPL. Thanks to Kallis’s batting, not to mention the efforts of the RCB bowlers earlier, the team won the match by seven wickets, thus beating the (almost) invincible DD.
The DLF Maximum award was given to Ross Taylor, while Jacques Kallis was declared the Man of the Match for his brilliant half century. This win, while not changing the position of the DD on the ranks table, took the RCB to number four position.
After the match between the Mumbai Indians (MI) and the Rajasthan Royals (RR), everyone seemed to be gushing the same words over and over again!
The toss for match number 45 was won by the RR, and they elected to bat first. Graeme Smith and Rob Quiney were the openers for the RR, while Dhawal Kulkari bowled the first over. Seven runs were made off the first over, with one boundary (four).
The batsmen of the RR played at a steady run rate till the seventh over, when the first wicket, that of Smith, fell. The bowler responsible was Harbhajan Singh (Bhajji), and the fielder, J. P. Duminy. Smith had made 19 runs off 19 balls before his dismissal. Yusuf Pathan came in after him.
The Strategic Time Out, which is given to the teams to strategise, and which batsmen hope to see through, was a distant dream for the Pathan sibling as he got out just before it on a ball by Chetanya Nanda and was caught by Lasith Malinga after he had made 17 runs off 14 balls. Ravindra Jadeja came in next.
Quiney, who was playing a very good game of cricket, finally succumbed under the expert bowling of ‘slinger’ Malinga, who bowled him out after he made 51 runs, just after his half century. Siddharth Chitnis came in after Quiney, but was sent back to the bench by Dwayne Bravo (catch Abhishek Nayar) after making only six runs off eight balls. Naman Ojha came in after Chitnis. It was then time for Jadeja to depart on a ball by Jayasuriya (catch Bravo) after he made a valuable 42 runs for his team off just 32 balls. Johan Botha came in after him.
Ojha, who had just come to the field, quickly left after making only one run (ball Jayasuriya, catch Ajinkya Rahane). The RR skipper Shane Warne was the next man in. By this time, the innings was already in the last over, and on the last ball, Warne lost his wicket, and thus, the RR ended at 145-7.
The batting order of the MI had undergone a change, and Yogesh Takawale, along with Bravo, opened the batting, while Yusuf Pathan opened bowling. Eight runs were made in the first over, and in the second over, the first wicket of the MI fell. The man to be dismissed was Bravo, and he had made merely one run (ball and catch Munaf Patel).
In Bravo’s place came Rahane. But with two newcomers on the field, the pressure became too much, and Rahane got out on a ball by Warne (catch Abhishek Raut) after making only three runs. Jayasuriya came in next. After Rahane, it was the other newcomer, Takawale, who lose his wicket, and he departed after having made 18 runs off 22 balls. Tendulkar came in next. With two stalwarts on the field, it was expected that this time round, there would be some good display of batting, and to a certain extent, that did happen, as Sachin hit a few fours and even got a Free Hit, but no runs came off it. At the end of 10 overs the MI were at 54-3.
After the Strategic break, Jayasuriya’s wicket fell on a ball by Warne (catch Pathan) after he had made 16 runs. Duminy came in next, and the MI fans expected him to play well, as he has been in excellent form this season. However, that was not to be, and Duminy was bowled out by youngster Siddharth Trivedi after he had made only four runs. Nayar came in next.
Tendulkar, who had been going great guns so far, looked capable of leading the MI to victory, but these hopes, too, were dashed after the Little Master got out on a LBW by Warne. Thus, captain dismissed captain! However, Tendulkar had, by then, put up a decent total of 40 runs off 30 balls for himself. Bhajji came in after Tendulkar, and suddenly, it started raining fours and sixes! Nayar and Bhajji were doing a good job of salvaging the game by hitting a few fours and sixes between them, but then Nayar’s wicket fell, after he had made a fantastic 35 off just 18 (run out Naman Ojha, wicketkeeper).
After Nayar came Kulkarni, and by this time, the match was in the 19th over. It was a very crucial point, but Kulkarni couldn’t stay at the crease for too long. He just made one run, and got out. He was followed by Nanda, who was also dismissed, and Malinga was the last man in.
All the tail-enders were trying to give Bhajji the strike, because all that the MI needed to win was four runs! However, as the players at the striker’s end kept getting out one by one, Bhajji didn’t get a chance to bat, and with three balls remaining, Malinga tried to take one run, just as had Nanda before him, and, just like Nanda, Malinga, too, was run out! The MI lost the match by a hair’s breadth, and got all out at 143, just three runs short of victory (two short of a tie, which would have led to a Super Over). In the dug out, Tendulkar couldn’t believe himself, while an ecstatic Shilpa Shetty, and an even more ecstatic Warne, couldn’t contain their excitement.
The DLF Maximum award was given to Quiney, and the Man of the Match award was given to Shane Warne for his unbelievable three wickets. At the end of the day, spectators must have just managed to survive severe cardiac arrest, such was the match! This match catapulted the RR to number three position on the rank table, while bringing down the MI to number six.
In order to reach the semi finals, the MI will now not only have to win both their remaining matches, but also hope that the other teams (between positions five and seven) don’t play too well!
Yes, match number 41 between the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) sure was entertaining!
In the match played at Centurion stadium, the RCB won the toss and elected to field first. While KKR skipper Brendon McCullum and ex-skipper Saurav Ganguly were the openijg batsmen, the bowling attack was opened by R. Vinay Kumar of the RCB.
While the first and second overs were uneventful, Vinay Kumar bowled the third over, in which he claimed the important wicket of Ganguly who walked back to the bench after making four runs off six balls. After he was caught by Mark Boucher (wicketkeeper), the scoreboard read 13-1.
After Ganguly came Arindam Ghosh, but before he could settle in, he was replaced by David Hussey, who was playing his first match in this season of the IPL. At the end of 10 overs, the KKR team’s score was 69-2.
After the Strategic Time Out, Hussey, who had playing a fabulous innings thus far, was bowled out by Akhil after the former had made 43 runs off only 27 balls! Angelo Mathews, who was also playing his first match, came in after Hussey, but couldn’t make a big contribution, and was dismissed by Anil Kumble.
Next, it was Wriddhiman Saha who walked in at four down. The last over was bowled by Jacques Kaliis, and a lot of runs were made off it, as Kallis bowled two No Balls, the first one of which did not bring a Free Hit for the KKR, but the second one did. Thus, at the end of 20 overs, the KKR score was 173-4, with McCullum at a brilliant 84 runs off 64 balls, not out!
Now, it was the turn of the RCB. Kallis and Jesse Ryder opened the innings, while the same was done by Ishant Sharma for the KKR. The first wicket fell on the ball of Murali Karthik, and Kallis was caught by McCullum after he had made 32 runs off 34 balls.
The other opener, Ryder, got out after he had made 22 runs. At the crease now were Robin Uthappa and Ross Taylor. While the latter stayed till the end, the former got out on a ball by Karthik after having made only seven runs.
Rahul Dravid came in next, but he, too, failed to deliver and got out after 12 runs, which he made off 12 deliveries on a fantastic ball – both bowled and caught – by Ajantha Mendis!
Boucher came in after that, and what followed was one of the best pieces of batting and partnership. Between Boucher and Taylor, the bats came alive and each stroke connected with the ball fabulously, until more than 50 runs were made off the last four overs alone! As a result of their mind blowing batting, the RCB won an almost certainly lost match, once again leading to the defeat of the KKR, in spite of a brilliant performance by them.
The man of the Match award – no surprises there – went to Ross Taylor for hitting an unbeaten 81 off just 33 balls, possibly one of the lowest ever!
