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Tag: IPL

  • Punjab Kings wins toss, elects to bowl against Chennai Super Kings

    By PTI

    DUBAI: Punjab Kings captain KL Rahul won the toss and elected to bowl against Chennai Super Kings in their IPL match here on Thursday.

    Punjab made one change to their side, bringing in Chris Jordan in place of West Indian batter Nicholas Pooran Chennai Super Kings, who have qualified for the play-offs and are aiming to seal a top two finish, chose to retain the same XI that played in the previous game against Delhi Capitals.

    Teams:

    Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (captain, WK), Faf du Plessis, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Josh Hazlewood

    Punjab Kings: K L Rahul (captain, WK), Mayank Agarwal, Aiden Markram, Sarfaraz Khan, M Shahrukh Khan, Moises Henriques, Chris Jordan, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohd Shami, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh

  • Used to bowl fast from the very starting, Irfan Pathan also helped me: SRH pacer Umran Malik

    By ANI

    ABU DHABI: SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) pace sensation Umran Malik has said that bowling fast comes naturally to him and ever since the starting, he has bowled quickly to disrupt the batters’ concentration.

    SRH pacer Umran Malik clocked 153kph to bowl the fastest delivery of IPL 2021 against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Wednesday. Malik achieved this feat in the 4th delivery of the 9th over against Devdutt Padikkal. RCB batter got the outside edge and scored a run on the fastest delivery of IPL 2021.

    “From the very starting, I used to bowl fast. When I played cricket with Cosco ball, I used to bowl fast then also. We used to play one over matches and I used to run in and bowl fast yorkers. In 2018, U-19 trials came and I was bowling, the selectors saw me. I was bowling with jogger shoes, then my friend gave me spike shoes and I then came into the U-19 team. Then I played Under-23 cricket,” Malik told teammate Bhuvneshwar Kumar in a video posted on iplt20.com.

    “In 2018, I was practicing regularly. After Under-23, I played Vijay Hazare and Ranji Trophy. I thank the SRH franchise for giving me an opportunity. Irfan Pathan came and he told me where I can improve. I was scared at first when I had to bowl to Warner and Williamson in the nets. I prayed to god that I just bowl good balls. I kept on learning and this has helped me,” he added.

    A spirited bowling performance saw Kane Williamson-led SRH defeat RCB by four runs here at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Wednesday. Bhuvneshwar Kumar defended 13 off the final over to help his side register a thrilling victory.

    “I was determined to take a wicket against RCB and I just wanted to take a wicket,” said Malik.

    Earlier, Jason Roy played a knock of 44 runs as SRH posted a total of 141/7 in the allotted twenty overs. For RCB, Harshal Patel returned with the figures of 3-33.

    SunRisers Hyderabad will next take on Mumbai Indians on Friday at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

  • Was trying to bowl wide yorkers to AB de Villiers: SRH pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar

    By ANI

    ABU DHABI: SunRisers Hyderabad pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar said that his plan was to bowl wide yorkers to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batter AB de Villiers in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 encounter.

    A spirited bowling performance saw Kane Williamson-led SRH defeat RCB by four runs here at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Wednesday. Bhuvneshwar Kumar defended 13 off the final over to help his side register a thrilling victory.

    “The hand is fine. I got hit thrice after I dropped a catch as well. When AB bats, I was thinking about the process. I was trying to bowl wide yorkers,” Bhuvneshwar told host broadcaster Star Sports after the game ended.

    “I bowled a yorker at the stumps and got hit for a six and then again went back to wide yorkers. If you look at the score at three venues it hasn’t been much. We did think we were 10-15 short though,” he added.

    SRH pacer Umran Malik clocked 153kph to bowl the fastest delivery of IPL 2021 against RCB. Malik achieved this feat on the 4th delivery of the 9th over against Devdutt Padikkal. The RCB batter got an outside edge and scored a run on the fastest delivery of IPL 2021.

    Earlier, Jason Roy played a knock of 44 runs as SRH posted a total of 141/7 in the allotted twenty overs. For RCB, Harshal Patel returned with the figures of 3-33.

    SunRisers Hyderabad will next take on Mumbai Indians on Friday at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

  • Pace is Umran Malik’s biggest asset, he has great control: SRH all-rounder Jason Holder

    By ANI

    ABU DHABI: After registering a thrilling four-run win over Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, SunRisers Hyderabad all-rounder Jason Holder said that Umran Malik’s biggest asset is his pace.

    A spirited bowling performance saw Kane Williamson-led SRH defeat RCB by four runs here at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Wednesday. Bhuvneshwar Kumar defended 13 off the final over to help his side register a thrilling victory.

    “The first thing to mention is his pace, that is his biggest asset. He has been consistent in training and he has been giving us a hard time in training. He is very hard to get hold of, he has been deceiving the batters through his pace and that extra pace adds a boost to any bowling attack,” said Holder during a virtual post-match press conference.

    “It is good to see his control as well, a lot of guys who have bowled quick over the years, generally they can be erratic but he has been pretty consistent,” he added.

    Umran Malik clocked 153kph to bowl the fastest delivery of IPL 2021 against RCB. Malik achieved this feat in the 4th delivery of the 9th over against Devdutt Padikkal. RCB batter got the outside edge and scored a run on the fastest delivery of IPL 2021. Talking about his own performance, Holder said: “Well I just try to prepare well. Funny enough I did not practice on Tuesday, I tend to watch the footage and see patterns on where I can set the field when I bowl. I think batting is just about the situation, the partnership I formed, in the end, was crucial,” he added.

    Earlier, Jason Roy played a knock of 44 runs as SRH posted a total of 141/7 in the allotted twenty overs. For RCB, Harshal Patel returned with the figures of 3-33.

    SunRisers Hyderabad will next take on Mumbai Indians on Friday at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

  • Umran Malik certainly is special: Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Kane Williamson

    By ANI

    ABU DHABI: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Kane Williamson believes that pace sensation Umran Malik is special after the Indian youngster clocked 153kph to bowl the fastest delivery of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.

    Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) held the nerve to defeat Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by four runs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jason Holder, Siddarth Kaul, Umran Malik, and Rashid Khan picked one wicket each for SRH while Devdutt Padikkal and Glenn Maxwell played innings of 41 and 40 respectively for the RCB.

    Earlier, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) was restricted to the score of 141/7 as Harshal Patel scalped three wickets while Dan Christian and George Garton returned with two and one respectively. Yuzvendra Chahal also bagged one wicket. Jason Roy and Kane Williamson played innings of 44 and 31 respectively as SRH’s middle-order batters failed to bank on after such a good start.

    Kane Williamson, SRH skipper and Player of the Match during the post-match presentation said: “It’s been a tough season and it’s great to see some of those small improvements. To see those small adjustments was good, we thought that total was competitive and we saw that fight throughout the ball as well. I was just trying to maximize the powerplay and the ball was holding on the surface and we were fortunate to build a partnership and we knew things wouldn’t happen quickly from a bowling perspective, but we knew if we held our nerve and stay there for longer periods, we can build that pressure. Game was getting tight and dismissing him (Maxwell) one way or the other was the key, they are a fantastic side and even though we are not in the contention it was great to see the fight.”

    “He certainly is special (on Umran Malik). We saw him in the nets in the last couple of seasons and he is a real competitor and is proving to be effective even on slower surfaces. He’s got a lot of mates in the team as well and that helps in sharing the knowledge. It’s a great opportunity for the younger guys to get involved and hopefully we will keep learning and we go again on Friday,” he added. (ANI)

  • Kohli wins toss, elects to bowl against laggards SRH

    By PTI

    ABU DHABI: Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli won the toss and elected to bowl against SunRisers Hyderabad in their IPL match here on Wednesday.

    RCB, who are eyeing the second place in the points table, are going unchanged.

    Kohli feels the wicket will play better in the latter half of the match.

    Already eliminated from the Play-offs race, the struggling SRH are also playing the same playing XI that competed in their last match.

    Teams: Royal Challengers Bangalore: Virat Kohli (C), Devdutt Paddikal, Srikar Bharat, Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Dan Christian, Shahbaz Ahmed, George Garton, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal and Mohammed Siraj.

    Sunrisers Hyderabad: Kane Williamson (C), Jason Roy, Wriddhiman Saha, Priyam Garg, Abhishek Sharma, Abdul Samad, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul and Umran Malik.

  • SRH set RCB 142-run target

    By PTI

    ABU DHABI: Royal Challengers Bangalore restricted Sunrisers Hyderabad to a modest 141 for seven in their Indian Premier League match here on Wednesday.

    Opener Jason Roy (44) and skipper Kane Williamson (31) resisted the RCB attack with fighting knocks while Jason Holder (16) played a useful cameo down the batting order.

    Harshal Patel (3/33) and Dan Christian (2/14) shared five wickets between them for SRH.

    Brief Scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad: 141 for 7 in 20 overs (Jason Roy 44, Kane Williamson 31; Harshal Patel 3/33, Dan Christian 2/14).

  • IPL 2021: SRH seal a narrow four-run win over RCB

    By IANS

    ABU DHABI: Sunrisers Hyderabad sealed a narrow four-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in Match 52 of the IPL 2021 at Sheikh Zayed Stadium here on Wednesday. Hyderabad defended 142 against a Bangalore batting line-up which threatened briefly to chase down the target.

    Bangalore were given an early jolt with Bhuvneshwar Kumar trapping Virat Kohli in front with an incoming delivery in the first over. Daniel Christian’s promotion to three backfired as he chipped a catch to mid-off off Siddarth Kaul. KS Bharat slammed two boundaries before falling to gloving behind off Umran Malik in the seventh over.

    Rashid Khan’s first ball to Glenn Maxwell was hoicked over deep mid-wicket in the eighth over. When Khan returned for his next over, Maxwell took on him again, slog-sweeping over long-on for a six followed by a wristy sweep through deep mid-wicket. In between, Malik was beating Maxwell for pace.

    Maxwell’s partnership of 54 with Devdutt Padikkal ended in the 15th over as a direct hit from a sliding Kane Williamson at cover caught the right-hander short of his crease while taking a quick single. Padikkal’s painstaking struggle to break free ended when he holed out to deep mid-wicket off Khan in the 17th over.

    Shahbaz Ahmed took eleven off Malik in the 18th over, including two boundaries, to bring the equation to 18 runs in the last two overs. Ahmed was dropped by Kumar at long-on in the start of the 19th over but pulled straight to mid-wicket on the fourth ball off Jason Holder.

    With 13 needed off the final over, AB de Villiers slammed a six straight down the ground off Kumar. But Kumar conceded just one run off the final ball to give Hyderabad a slim win.

    Brief Scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad 141/7 in 20 overs (Jason Roy 44, Kane Williamson 31, Harshal Patel 3/33, Daniel Christian 2/14) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 137/6 in 20 overs (Devdutt Padikkal 41, Glenn Maxwell 40, Umran Malik 1/21, Siddarth Kaul 1/24) by four runs.

  • IPL 2021: KKR eye handsome win over Rajasthan Royals to remain ahead in play-off race 

    By PTI

    SHARJAH: Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders would strive for a handsome win over struggling Rajasthan Royals in their last round-robin game to stay ahead in the IPL play-offs race here on Thursday.

    With 12 points from 13 matches, KKR are currently sitting at the fourth position in the pecking order, just ahead of defending champions Mumbai Indians on net run-rate.

    MI too have 12 points from 13 games and still have a match to play against bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday.

    If both KKR and MI win their last matches, then it will boil down to net run rate and that’s where the Eoin Morgan-led side (0.294) would have an edge as it currently enjoys a positive run rate compared to the Mumbai outfit (-0.048).

    KKR had a mixed bag in the second leg of the tournament so far, winning four and losing two games.

    While KKR started the second phase with back-to-back wins over Royal Challengers Bangalore and MI before suffering a defeat to Chennai Super Kings, they came back to beat table toppers Delhi Capitals.

    A defeat against Punjab Kings followed before they outplayed SRH by six wickets to keep their nose ahead in the race for the final play-offs spot.

    KKR have been impressive in the second half and even their two defeats were narrow, where they lost in the last over.

    In the batting department, Venkatesh Iyer has been the star performer in the second leg for KKR, while Rahul Tripathi too has been impressive this season.

    Young Shubman Gill scored a fine half-century in KKR’s last match, which holds good for the team.

    Nitish Rana, up in the batting order, has also done well but the form of skipper Morgan remains a cause for concern.

    The induction of star Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib al Hasan in the last match for the first time in the second leg, has given a new dimension to the side.

    In bowling, mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy has been the team’s go-to man while Sunil Narine too has been among the wickets.

    In the absence of Andre Russell and Lockie Ferguson, who missed a few games following injuries, Tim Southee and Shivam Mavi are the new pace bowling pair for KKR.

    Pacer Prasidh Krishna did well to snap four wickets in the matches that he had played, before being dropped for conceding 22 runs in the 19th over, against CSK.

    RR are out of the race, languishing at the seventh spot in the eight-team standings with 10 points from 13 games. And come Thursday, RR would look to dent KKR’s hopes and end their campaign on a positive note.

    RR have been hit hard by the form of their Indian batsmen. Barring Yashahvi Jaiswal and, to some extent, skipper Sanju Samson, the team’s Indian batsmen lacked intent.

    With Mustafizur Rahaman as their most experienced overseas signing and young Chetan Sakariya in the ranks, RR’s bowling is a bit thin on experience.

    Teams | Kolkata Knight Riders: Eoin Morgan (captain), Dinesh Karthik, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Karun Nair, Nitish Rana, Rahul Tripathy, Shubman Gill, Harbhajan Singh, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Pawan Negi, M Prasidh Krishna, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Dube, Tim Southee, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy, Andre Russel, Ben Cutting, Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer, Sheldon Jackson, Tim Seifert.

    Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (captain), Liam Livingstone, Evin Lewis, David Miller, Chris Morris, Oshane Thomas, Mustafizur Rahaman, Tabraiz Shamsi, Glenn Phillips, Chetan Sakariya, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Akash Singh, Anuj Rawat, KC Cariappa, Yashashvi Jaiswal, Shivam Dube, Shreyas Gopal, Kartik Tyagi, Mayank Markande, Jaydev Unadkat, Kuldip Yadav, Mahipal Lomror.

    Match starts at 7:30 PM.

  • Cool and calm Maxwell: Aussie veteran makes the difference for RCB in IPL 2021

    By Express News Service

    CHENNAI: 145, 179, 310, 169 and 108 runs. These were Glenn Maxwell’s numbers in his last five IPL seasons. Such numbers are staggering for a player, who has done well in the shorter format of the game at the international level and leagues like the Big Bash. 

    He had a thing or two to prove in the 2021 campaign, and has delivered in style, scoring 407 runs for Royal Challengers Bangalore so far.

    Previously with other teams, the 32-year-old was seen as someone who can smash.

    Things have been a tad different in the 24th edition where he has played as the number four batsman allowing  him more time at the crease.

    Maxwell has also take upon himself the responsibility of being much more responsible.

    Much more calculated.

    So what has really worked for Maxwell in Bangalore colours? Previously with other teams, the 32-year-old was primarily looked up as someone who can smash quickfire runs at the end. As a result, he did not have much time to settle down. 

    He was also expected to deliver from ball one. Things have been a tad different in the 14th edition as the number four batsmen, allowing him more time at the crease.  

    An impressive opening stand between Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal has helped Maxwell a lot, ensuring he does not walk in under pressure.

    It would not be wrong to say that Maxwell has been one of the main reasons for Bangalore’s success this season as they have already reached the Playoffs. 

    And if things go as per plan, they could well finish in the top two. More importantly, when he has walked to bat for Bangalore, the element of pressure is quite non-existent with the likes of AB de VIlliers, who can score at blistering pace at the end, batting at number five.

    “It is more about the overs that we are trying to get our batters out there. For me, I am looking to get out there just after powerplay. If I can have that opportunity to bat a little more than 10 overs to go, then I give myself an over or two out  there to get used to the conditions and give myself a platform to go. AB is a little bit later…he has the ability to hit boundaries early on in his innings, he is suited to back end and later overs, where he can cash in. Having (De Villiers) come after me and be there to finish the innings is a hell of a luxury,” said Maxwell, who has scored three half-centuries in a row in his last three innings.

    Maxwell has also taken upon himself to be much more responsible. 

    Often criticised for playing reckless shots in the past, he has been much more calculative and taken time to understand the conditions before taking charge. 

    After getting his eye in, he has been dangerous, hitting sixes at will against both the spinners and pacers.

    “I know I score quickly in ODI and T20 cricket. It was more about having a solid technique at the start of my innings and making sure I take in much information before taking the first risks. With this (RCB) line-up I am afforded a little bit more time to gather information and spend more time in the middle and then when I decide to flick the switch and have a crack, it is a well informed decision.”

    It remains to be seen if he can outdo his best (552 runs in 2014) for the then Kings XI Punjab.