They say that in cricket, the game isn’t over until it’s over. This holds so true for the match between the Deccan Chargers (DC) and the King’s XI Punjab (KXIP)!

The DC won the toss and elected to field first. Sunny Sohal and Simon Katich were the openers for the KXIP as usual, while Ryan Harris bowled the first over which consisted of two wides and one six. Nine runs were made off the first over. The first wicket fell in the second over, when Sohal was caught by Rohit Sharma on a ball by R. P. Singh after making only nine runs off 12 balls. The score was now 12-1. Luke Pomersbach came in after Sohal, but got out after making merely one run. Yuvraj Singh (Yuvi) came in next. While Sohal’s wicket fell in the third over, that of Katich fell in the fifth over when he was batting at 11 runs (ball Andrew Symonds, catch Pragyan Ojha). Kumar Sangakarra (Sanga) came in after Katich.

A partnership between Yuvi and Sanga would’ve been damaging, and the DC knew this, so they made sure to dismiss Yuvi before he could pose any potential threat. Wilkin Mota followed, and, at the end of 10 overs, the KXIP were 55-4. After the strategic break, Mota’s wicket fell, thanks to Tirumalasetti Suman’s bowling and Harris’s catch. Mota had made 12 runs off 19 balls. Irfan Pathan was the next batsman in.

Sanga had been the only batsman so far who had made a score of any significance, but after completing his sixth IPL 50, he got out at the score of 56 (43 balls) on a ball by R. P. and was caught by Harris. Brett Lee came in at six down. In the 20^th over, which was bowled by R. P., eight runs were made and one wicket was taken, that of Irfan Pathan, who was caught by Herschelle Gibbs after he made 17 runs off 11 balls. Piyush Chawla was the next and last man in. Thus, the KXIP made 134 runs at the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs.

Adam Gilchrist (Gilly) and Gibbs opened the batting for the DC, while Lee opened the bowling attack. The first four overs were uneventful, but in the fifth over, Gilly fell victim to Ramesh Powar’s bowling (caught behind wicket) after making 23 runs off 13 balls. Suman came in after Gilly, but the very first ball he faced proved fatal for him, as he was bowled out by Powar! Thus, Powar was on a hat trick, but he didn’t manage to complete it as Symonds, who came in next, refused to oblige.

At the end of 10 overs, the DC were at 65-2. The third, and one of the biggest blows, fell on the DC when Gibbs got out after making 26 runs off 37 balls on a ball by Yuvi (catch Chawla). Rohit Sharma came in next. Symonds, on whom a lot of hopes were pinned, didn’t come through and got out after making only 25 runs off 25 balls (strike rate – 100) on a ball by Yuvi (stumping Sanga). Next man in was Venugopal Rao, who got out on the very next ball, and returned to the pavilion without scoring any runs.

After Rao’s dismissal, Dwaraka Ravi Teja came in, but was run out by Lee after making only 10 runs off 15 balls. Harris came in thereafter. It now looked like the match was lost for the DC, but in the 19^th over, bowled by Lee, Sharma hit one six, one four, and also got a Free Hit – courtesy a No Ball by Lee – off which he got one run. Suddenly, the DC, who had lost hope, sat up as they realised they still had a chance. Then, in the last over, Sharma was bowled out by Pathan after he had made 42 runs off only 26 balls.

After Sharma’s dismissal, R. P. came in, but he got out without making any runs. Then Jaskaran Singh came in. In the end, four runs were required off three balls, but that proved too much for the two batsmen on the field, and the DC ended at 133-8. Yes, they fell just two short of victory! Even worse, the KXIP won by only 1 run! It must have been agony for the DC, but the result couldn’t be helped. The DLF Maximum award was given to Rohit Sharma, while the Man of the Match was Yuvraj Singh.

Yuraj Singh was said to have picked up a hat trick, but that was a mistake, because he had taken only two wickets – that of Symonds and Rao – in succession, while the one before Symonds – Gibbs’ wicket – had been taken by Yuvraj, but not just before he took Symonds’ wicket. Thus, Yuvraj did take three wickets, but not on a hat trick. One wonders that while the management did not realise it, did Yuvraj also not realise that he had not got a hat trick?

By - Rashida Shabbir Arsiwala

Remember that match between the Mumbai Indians and the Kolkata Knight Riders when ‘it rained fours and sixes’? Well, the match held between the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and the King’s XI Punjab (KXIP) on May 5, 2009, was just like that.

The RR won the toss and chose to bat. While the RR team remained unchanged, the KXIP had a new (old) player – Sreesanth. Sreesanth was playing his first match of this season of the IPL.

Naman Ojha and Graeme Smith opened the batting for the RR. The match was a great entertainer right from the first over, in which two sixes and one four were hit. As a result of this, by the end of 10 overs, the score of the RR stood at 93, without the loss of any wicket!

The fours and sixes continued to come down even after the Strategic Break, when on the very first ball of the 11th over, Smith hit a six, to complete his half century in style. Naman Ojha also completed his half century. However, in the 15th over, the first wicket of the RR fell, and Smith was dismissed by Ramesh Powar (catch Piyush Chawla) after he made 77 runs off only 44 balls! (Fall of wicket – 135-1).

By this time, the RR had great momentum going in their batting, and at this stage Yusuf Pathan came in. Also known to be a big hitter, Yusuf started hitting fours and sixes as soon as he was in. But he didn’t last long, and was dismissed on a ball by Chawla once again, and was caught by Karan Goel. He had made 12 runs off seven balls.

Next person in was Ravinder Jadeja. In the meantime, Ojha stayed on and continued hitting fours and sixes and it looked as if he would never stop! Nevertheless, in the 17th over, he hit a six, and got out on the next ball; Chawla once again weaving his magic spell on the ball (catch Simon Katich). But Ojha played a fabulous innings of 68 runs off 51 balls. Carseldine came in next.

Sreesanth, who had conceded the least amount of runs in the three overs which he bowled, also bowled the 19th over. However, his hard work of the previous overs went down the drain when he bowled a No Ball in the 19th over, because of which Jadeja got a Free Hit and made two runs. If that were not enough, the very ball of the Free Hit was also a No Ball! Thus, Jadeja got yet another Free Hit, and he didn’t miss that opportunity, and went straight for a six. The over proved very expensive for the KXIP with two No Balls, one six, and one four. 23 runs were made in the over, one of the highest ever!

The fourth wicket, which fell on the first ball of the 20th over, was that of Jadeja, who was dismissed by Irfan Pathan (catch Mahela Jayawardene). He made 33 runs off just 12 balls! Next person in was Abhishek Raut, and at the end of the innings, the RR total stood at 211 runs at the loss of four wickets.

The KXIP had a great total to make. Sunny Sohal and Karan Goel opened the innings. But the timing was just not right for the KXIP, and Sohal got out on the first ball of the innings on a ball by Amit Singh (catch Shane Warne).

While Kumara Sangakarra came in a one down, the second wicket followed on the heels of the first one, and Goel got out (ball Amit, catch Shane Harwood) after making only one run! Simon Katich came in next.

Warne, who is generally a fantastic fielder, dropped Sangakarra in the second over. The first four of the innings came as late as the fifth over!

The third wicket came in the form of Katich, who was bowled by Trivedi. The KXIP scoreboard now read 25-3. While Jayawardene came in after that, Sangakarra got out (ball Yusuf, stumping Ojha) after making 11 runs off 15 balls.

Skipper Yuvraj Singh was the next man in, and what was needed was that he build a good partnership with Jayawardene, but that was not to be, as the latter got out on a ball by Harwood, and was caught by Trivedi after he made nine runs off 11 balls.

The 11th over was interesting to watch because it started with Yusuf Pathan bowling to Irfan Pathan! But they didn’t face each other long, as, in the 12th over, Warne saw to it that Irfan was dismissed by way of a LBW. Irfan had made 19 runs off 17 balls. Piyush Chawla was next, but he didn’t last on the crease either, and Ramesh Powar soon took his place.

The final blow came when Yuvraj got out after making 48 runs, just two short of a half century, but, more importantly, his wicket sealed the fate of the KXIP, and, after 20 overs, their score, in spite of 19 extras, was 133-8.

The Man of the Match award was given to Graeme Smith for his fabulous innings.
By–   Rashida Shabbir Arsiwala
http://rasharsiblog.blogspot.com/

This was just the case with the Mumbai Indians (MI) in their match against the King’s XI Punjab (KXIP) on Wednesday, April 29.

It was said before the beginning of the IPL in South Africa that the pitches there were ‘batsmen’s pitches’, but the bowlers of all the teams continuously proved this prophesy wrong. So was the case with the MI. The toss was won by Yuvraj Singh, captain of the KXIP, and they chose to bat first. The openers were, as usual, Ravi Bopara and Karan Goel. The bowling attack, meanwhile, opened with Zaheer Khan of the MI.

After an uneventful first over, the second over was bowled by Lasith Malinga. He conceded just one run in the over. Next on the attack came Harbhajan Singh, and soon the man weaved his magic with the ball, resulting in the very first wicket falling, (due to stumping by P. Shah); the man to be dismissed being Karan Goel who had by then managed to make 12 runs off 12 balls, playing at the strike rate of a perfect 100.

The next man to come in was Kumara Sangakarra. The game had barely progressed when the second blow was struck to the KXIP in the form of Ravi Bopara who fell victim to Bravo’s ball (caught by Sachin Tendulkar) and got out after making 6 runs off 14 balls. The next man in was the skipper himself, but he too couldn’t stand the assault by JP Duminy, (caught by Zaheer), and got out after making 10 runs from 13 balls. Next came Jayawardene, but he too didn’t last long, going down on a ball by fellow country mate on the national team, Sanath Jayasurya.

Irfan Pathan, Mota, Piyush Chawla and Ramesh Powar came in next, none of them staying too long. The only person who made a significant contribution was Sangakarra who stayed till the end of the innings, which, on completion, stood at what looked like a very ‘gettable’ total of 120 runs. (KXIP ended at 119 – 8).

In such a format of the game as is the IPL, where fours and sixes come by the dozen, the King’s XI team managed to hit only two sixes, which showed just how strong the MI bowling was.

Next, it was time for the MI to bat, and as the two stalwarts – and heroes of the last game against Kolkata – came on the field, spirits among the fans on the MI were high, as the total looked small enough for the two of them – Tendulkar and Jayasurya – to get it themselves. However, that was not to be, and after delivering a wide on the very first ball of the innings, Irfan Pathan struck big on the second ball, dismissing Jayasurya, and the MI scoreboard read 0 – 1. Now, all hopes were pinned on Tendulkar, but the man who usually rises to the challenge, was unable to do so this time, and he got out on a ball by V. Malik (caught by Jayawardene) after making only one run off six balls. Now, it was upto J. P. Duminy and Shikar Dhawan to get the MI to the total of 120 runs.

But Dhawan fell prey to Yusuf Abdulla, and Bravo came in next to bat. In the sixth over, Duminy hit two consecutive fours and eased the tension in the MI camp just a little bit. (Duminy was the only player in the MI team who stayed on the field for a considerable amount of time and when he got out towards the end, he had made 59 runs off 63 balls). Then Bravo got out, and the trend continued until it was down to the last ball when 5 runs were needed. What was required was a six, but even a four would tie the game, leading to a ‘super over’. But that didn’t prove to be necessary, because Ramesh Powar stopped the ball and the KXIP won the game by three runs.

It was a match worth watching, in that, in spite of putting up such a small total, Yuvi and his boys came out strong and attacked, rather than defended, and that, combined with superb fielding, resulted in them winning the match. Sangakarra was declared Man of the Match.

By – Rashida Shabbir Arsiwala
http://rasharsiblog.blogspot.com/

Captaincy is not an issue at Kings XI Punjab but skipper Yuvi who has come into the IPL with poor form and had an ordinary season with the bat last year will want to prove a point or two. The issue of captaincy has a become a clash of egos in the Kolkata camp and Mc Cullum, Buchanan and SRK will all need a win here to raise their collars.

We have the bat

While the performances of Gayle or Mc Cullum at the top will make or break it for Kolkata, Yuvraj and Sangakkara are the two men around whom Punjab’s batting will revolve. A big performance from any of these players will almost certainly rule other small pawns out of the game.

Ganguly and Chopra for Kolkata and Jayawardene for Punjab haven’t promised much but can play crucial roles if they leave anchor and others play with freedom.

We have the ball
Both these teams are not very strong bowling units but Kolkata have a slight edge with Ishant and Murali Kartik looking good. If the pitch in Durban too assists the slower bowlers, Gayle could be a valuable contributor for Kolkata and so could be Yuvraj for Punjab. Kolkata may look to bring in Mendis and push in Indian like Saha or Pujara in place of Brad Hodge. Mendis could wreak havoc if the pitch suits him.

Patrolling Party
Both the teams are average fielding units. Yuvraj may play a crucial role for Punjab.

High on betting meter

Punjab may be higher on betting meter but the bookies might be in for a surprise.

 Who gets the tick?

Yuvraj, Sangakkara, Gayle and Mc Cullum…. Look out for these four men and you will get the vibes about the result.

Editorial: Mohit Goyal
www.goyalmohit.blogspot.com

Editorial: Mohit Goyal

Indian Premier League Match Preview – Semi final 2

Kings XI Punjab Vs Chennai Super Kings

Semi final 2 is to be played between the teams which stood at the second and third positions in the league.

The Armies – Kings XI Punjab v Chennai Super Kings

Kings XI Punjab with 20 points stood at the top of the league winning 10 of their 14 matches.Delhi Daredevils qualified by grabbing the third. They were victorious in 8 of their 14 matches. They ended on 16 points.

The Battleground – Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

Wankhede always has purchase for spinners and there was enough encouragement for spinners in the first semi final.

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Mumbai:

Indian Premier League (IPL) performance fianlly got Yusuf Pathan and Pragyan Ojha earn berths in the one-day match sqad in the Indian National Team for the tri-series in Bangladesh starting next month as also in the Asia-Cup in Pakistan.

Selectors held a meeting at Mumbai on Friday and decided on a much young squad for both the tournaments and dropped older player Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid. Earlier the duo was also ignored for the one-day team during the recently concluded triangular series in Australia.

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Editorial: Mohit Goyal

Indian Premier League has taken everybody by storm. The amount of fresh talent that’s been exposed would lead people to believe that there may be many new faces in team India. But the fact of the matter is that, only 15 or 16 players can be selected in the team and the players who were already there and there about have performed really well. There might be just a few inclusions in the batting and in the spin bowling departments.

Looking at the eight teams and the Indian players who have been the best in each its interesting to find that they are already in the national team.

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Editorial

IPL started with Brandon McMullum firing for Kolkata Knight Riders and today the league ended with one of the most powerful batting display by none other than Shaun Marsh with a superb knock of 115 (seven sixes and eleven fours) of just 69 balls. His knock ensured a smooth and confidence-boosting win for Kings XI Punjab just before the semis while it put a break to the no one team Rajasthan Royals winning streak.

Rajasthan Royals played the match today under the captain ship of Shane Watson in absence of Shane Warne who after winning toss decided to field.

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Kolkata: Lalit Verma

Knight Riders made a mark before ending their DLF IPL stint for this year. Ganguly and Gul’s combined firepower managed to stop the winning streak of Kings XI Punjab at Eden Gardens , Kolkata.

An exceptional thrilling game with both sides playing for different objectives. Kings XI Punjab with already their berth secured for the semi-finals played the game with an aim to dislodge Rajasthan Royals from the top slot and also to reinforce the overwhelming confidence. While the Knight Riders played the game to make a statement and regain their professional pride much of which was lost during the tournament with losses and a dismal batting performance.

Ganguly scored a superb knock of 86 out of 53 balls with six boundaries and equal no of over boundaries.While Umar Gul scored 24 out of 11 balls with one four and three sixes to make a record total in this field. Umar Gul also bagged the Man of the Match award for taking 4 wickets for 23 runs.

Earlier Yuvraj won the toss and decided to bat and summed up a total of 174 for 9 – which was good enough given the slow pitch. However Gul restricted the last over with two wickets and kept a check on the total also.

Kolkata seemed to be out of the game with almost 15 runs per over required in the last 5 overs. That was before Ganguly and Gul got together, putting on 49 runs in 18 balls. With 15 required off the last over, Ganguly was equal to the task, wrapping up the match with 2 balls to spare, reminiscent of how Warne did it for his team against the Deccan Chargers. Overall a great match where the game turned with every over during the end.

© IPL Cricket Forum

Editorial: Mohit Goyal

Indian Premier League Match Preview

Delhi Daredevils v Kings XI Punjab at Delhi

Last time these two teams met the match went to on till the last over. Sehwag and Gambhir had failed then. If any of these fires this time and add to that the exploits of Marsh and Pomersbach, we could have a run feast on menu.

Men at the Helm

Viru and Yuvi both are aggressive and pro active. Both like to catch competition by the throat and have an unabandoned approach. It has all the makings of a fiercely aggressive and competitive battle.

We have the bat

If Delhi depend heavily on Sehwag, Gambhir and Dhawan, Punjab do on Marsh, Yuvraj and Mahela. Both the teams need other men to come to party running into closing stages of the league round.

We have the ball

Both the teams have very good bowling line ups. Delhi have a slight edge having Mc Grath, Asif and Maharoof because, although Punjab bowlers are in pretty good form but Sreesanth and Piyush can be vulnerable.

Patrolling Party

Both are superb fielding sides. Probably the two best on show in the league. Watch out for some scintillating stuff as Marsh, Yuvi, Hopes, De Villiers, Dilshan and Dhawan take the field.

High on betting meter

Both teams stand at same levels on most betting meters with returns of 90 percent and shade under.

Who gets the tick?

Both teams have good bowling line ups and thus the result is likely to be decided by the batting. It will need an extraordinary innings from a batsman to turn the tide in his team’s favour.

© IPL Cricket Forum