Marcus Stoinis knows what he has to do in the last over and his team has to face lethal bowler Mustafizur Rahman on 17 points. Shuffle through, maintain form and swing along the line. If he gets at least a decent piece of wood, the ball will fly over the ropes. He knew Mustafizul would not go any lower. He will destroy them. Oddly, he didn’t angle it around the stumps. While this strategy initially worked well for Stoinis, it also ran the risk of giving him unnecessary width. So the Australian waited, ready to wave his giant arms. Mustafizul tried to bowl a hairy yorker but missed and Stonis bowled the ball under the bowler’s head. It was almost like the first half of the game. Sealing ship of Bangladesh will sink. A length ball follows – and Stonis falls off the ground in glee. Hope has abandoned Yellow Canyon. In the heat of the moment, Mustafizul lost faith in the knife. He tries another yorker, which results in Stonis throwing a low full toss into the kitchen sink. The edge of his bat was washed away by it. By now, the bowler and his teammates were convinced that it was not their night. It was the night of the Stoinis, the ice-veined Terminator they called the Hulk.
Spider-like possession
Before the game, Kuala Lumpur Rahul first order almost moved to second order. There isn’t much sign of lateral movement and the rear parts seem redundant. New Zealand quickman Matt Henry is not entirely happy. But he didn’t oppose the captain’s decision. The next ball was a fuller, Ajinka Lahanijhalkani blade kissed the edge with a short cut. The edge looked thick enough for KL Rahul to evade and go past first slip. But Rahul lunged through the side, his body hanging parallel to the ground, and almost before the ball got past him, he used the strap of his glove to remove the ball. When he calmed down, he got down on one knee and couldn’t believe how he managed to catch the edge. He may not be as technically gifted as some specialists, lacks the grace of Wriddhiman Saha or the composure of MS Dhoni, and still needs improvement in several areas, but you rarely see him leak. Ahead of the T20 World Cup, he once again reminded the selectors of his versatile skills when the time came.
drive them crazy
There is perhaps no better cricket opener in the IPL than Rituraj Gaikwad who is in the middle of an inspired batting spree. There are all kinds of styles – soft shots around the world, rising punches with minimal muscle flexing, tap square shots. Among them Ratna square drive leg spinner Ravi Bishnoi, against the turn. Bishnoi was a bit full and Gaikwad opened his bat at the last moment just before contact and with a casual spin of the wrist drove the ball between cover and backward point to the fence. From behind a tree stump, even LSG captain KL Rahul, himself a skilled driver, Couldn’t look at the batting with greed that has eroded the inherent non-violence of the format. Mohsin Khan had a cover drive on the front foot. So, his driving drove the LSG bowlers crazy.
Padikkal, impact player
LSG loses touch with KL Rahul Dedatta Padikkar Come on slow. He’s been running hard so far this season, his gorgeous touch as elusive as rain on an April night. Chennai. From the moment he arrived, the strategy seemed flawed until this game when he shot a 75 point. He didn’t do himself or his team any favors by constantly cutting and lifting without making any kind of meaningful contact. Somehow, he managed a lazy 13 at a strike rate of 68.42 off 18 balls, Mathisha Pathirana did LSG and Padikkal a big favour, bowling him out with a devilish length ball that hit 151 kmph and some stitches for his defeat by Tamer. Push on the neck and crop. His feet were a complete mess, planted firmly on the ground. His hand was slow to react to the ball, and he pushed it only formally and feebly. One of India’s most talented young batsmen, his results have dropped significantly. Every batsman goes through phases like this, but whoever thought of fielding him as an impact player chasing 211 runs deserves a lot of credit.
Tags: CSK LSG match catches eye Stoinis hulks unable save Pedicle Rahul transforms SpiderMan
