After posting two huge wins, Kings XI Punjab were sent crashing down to earth by Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens on Thursday in the Indian Premier League.
Defending a total of 170, they were left stunned by Sunil Narine’s big-hitting at the top of the order, and failed to test the in-form Gautam Gambhir. Robin Uthappa and Manish Pandey’s cameos simply rubbed salt in the wounds of the already battered KXIP bowlers, who were sent on a leather hunt.
From finishing as the most economical team in the Powerplay overs in their first two games, KXIP were carted around the park – the 76 runs they conceded brought up KKR’s best showing in the first six overs in IPL history.
Batsman’s paradise or bad bowling?
After the game, KXIP pacer Ishant Sharma noted that the ball was skidding onto the batsman at a comfortable height, allowing them to pile on the runs at ease.
The first over of the day, though, bowled by KKR’s Trent Boult, suggested that guile and a hint of cunning may well stem the flow of runs. While Umesh Yadav ended with four wickets, each of the three he picked up late in the 18th over could have been carted over the fence on a different day.
Colin de Grandhomme, on debut, conceded just a solitary run and scalped the wicket of Hashim Amla in his first over. The Kiwi, though, followed it up with a horror show in the second over, overstepping twice.
Ishant, in his post-match presser, also hinted at trying to use the bouncer in the Powerplay overs. With Glenn Maxwell attacking with two slips, the KXIP bowlers simply didn’t do enough to induce edges off Gambhir or Narine in the early overs.
For the KKR skipper, the ball came at a comfortable height for him to free his arms on his favoured off-side. As for the surprise package of the day – Narine the batsman – pulling and hooking came naturally. KKR’s Kiwi pacers, albeit briefly, showed how seamers could operate on the wicket.
KKR could have restricted KXIP further had they held on to a couple of easy catching opportunities they were presented with. As for the KXIP bowlers, they were erratic and failed to match up to their captain’s attacking intent with field placing. Narine’s onslaught took the wind out of their sails.
The off-colour Sharma trio
Sandeep Sharma was the unsung hero in KXIP’s previous games, restricting their opponents to just 35 and 23 runs in the first six overs. Here, he was driven with ease by the KKR openers, and the backup bowlers fared equally poorly.
Ishant Sharma and Varun Aaron paid the price for trying to pepper the batsmen with short-pitched stuff. Maxwell the bowler also took quite a beating, with 18 coming from the only over he bowled. Having picked up a wicket in the first over through Axar Patel against Royal Challengers Bangalore, did the Australian miss a trick? He never had to roll his arm so far in the tournament.
It didn’t help matters that Mohit Sharma, who was introduced after the Powerplay, was also clubbed to the boundary ropes at will. Mohit’s dibbly-dobbly pace can be a menace if the ball seams away from the batsman from a fuller length. On a pitch with little margin for error, the the Haryana pacer was easy fodder.
It remains to be seen if KXIP are struggling with a mental block against KKR – this was their eighth successive loss against the Kolkata-based franchise. It could also be a case of the two-time champions being too good in the chase at Eden – their last defeat there batting second came way back in 2012.
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