Before Monday’s match against Delhi Daredevils, Yusuf Pathan hadn’t got as many chances to bat, thanks in part to the prolific Kolkata Knight Riders top order and the fact that he has been pushed down the order.
But when KKR were reeling at 21/3 in the third over chasing 169, Pathan grabbed the opportunity and scored a vital 59 off 39 deliveries with six boundaries and two sixes, to take Kolkata to the brink of victory.
Talking about the innings, he said that he stuck to the team’s game plan to not let the required run rate pile too high. “We had a good game plan and it succeeded. We were trying to get a boundary or a six in every over regardless of who the bowler was and to keep rotating the strike. The wicket was good and the partnership was also coming along well. So we were trying to put the bowlers and the captain under pressure so that they commit a mistake,” Yusuf told iplt20.com.
Yusuf put up a match-winning partnership of 110 runs with Manish Pandey, after the fall of three early wickets. While he was dismissed towards the end, Pandey took Kolkata across the line with a vital six in the last over.
“He is batting really well right now. The way I was middling the ball and the runs were coming, I was telling him ‘the runs are coming freely. You continue to rotate the strike, and if you get the ball (which is there to be hit) for a boundary or six, convert it,’” Yusuf said about the partnership.
The aggressive batsman was also very proud of having rescued his team at the crucial juncture. “Obviously whenever the team has needed I have always delivered. I got off to a good start and finished well, as well. I always try to assess the pressure that the bowler and the team are under when I go out to bat. (Here) When I came in to bat I was middling the ball well. The bowlers were under pressure. I could feel that they wanted my wicket. So, I was thinking that I have to stay at the wicket; as long as I am there the match is ours. I was telling myself that. I was converting the boundary balls into boundaries and the strike was rotating as well; so that was a good start,” he was quoted as saying.
In the chat, Pathan also revealed that his innings was a gift to his son on his third birthday,
“When we left from the hotel in Kolkata, he asked me for a bat and ball, which was a shock for me. He has only seen two games of mine since he really began to understand things. And after watching those two matches he has asked me for a bat and ball. I wanted to come here and win the game for the team. Today also, when we were talking on the phone, we talked about it. There can’t be a better gift then helping the team win and whatever he has asked for I will give those things to him after winning the game for my team,” Yusuf told iplt20.com.
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