RR Vs DD: Delhi were atrocious with the bat, yet again
Before the beginning of their clash against Rajasthan Royals at Jaipur, Delhi Daredevils knew that whatever they do from here onwards cannot clinch them a spot in the final four. That meant two things – either they go down fighting or resign to their fate and make up the numbers. Against the Royals they decided to take the latter approach, and it thus wasn’t surprising to see them going down without a trace of fight. Both with the bat and ball they were dreadful, as a result of which the Royals had no trouble in overcoming them.
It was with the bat that Delhi lost the match. Virender Sehwag needed to fire, but all he managed was another failure. The others were no good. CM Gautam did not make use of the opportunity presented to him while David Warner, who has been Delhi’s best batsmen since moving down the order, had a rare failure. Mahela Jayawardene played a mature hand under the circumstances, but did not last long enough to make an impact. Delhi reached respectability only because Ben Rohrer came up with a wonderful half-century, and was well-aided by Kedar Jadhav.
The Royals’ bowling was steady without being outstanding, and it was the same case with their batting, which was enough to see them home. Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane played proper cricketing strokes, and yet kept the required rate under control. With yet another fluent partnership, they reiterated that T20 cricket is not only about mindless hitting. Once Dravid was dismissed, Shane Watson took on the mantle of scoring and, gave company to Rahane, as the Royals got home easily. Like with their batting, Delhi had nothing to show with the ball as well. They were spineless.
Turning point of the game: Warner falling for 13, which reduced Delhi to 47 for 3.
MI Vs KKR: Sachin special set up Mumbai’s win
It had taken a long time coming, but Sachin Tendulkar finally came good for Mumbai Indians in the game against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium. Playing in front of his home crowd, Tendulkar seemed to have decided that the only way he was going to get back among the runs in by taking the attack to the bowlers. This is exactly what he did against Kolkata on Tuesday. The five consecutive fours he hit off Ryan McLaren were the works of a master craftsman. Tendulkar was in such imperious mood that he outscored the in-form Dwayne Smith by a significant margin.
Following the dismissal of Tendulkar, Kolkata fought back exceedingly well to put the pressure right back on the hosts. With some tight bowling and some brilliant fielding, it seemed Kolkata would be successful in restricting Mumbai at the death overs. But it wasn’t to be. Dinesh Karthik made sure there was the much-needed final flourish for Mumbai. Kolkata struggled chiefly because their most successful bowler was also the costliest. Although McLaren picked up two big wickets, he sprayed the ball all over, especially at the death.
During the last overs of the Mumbai innings, the momentum had shifted back towards the home side, and Mitchell Johsnon ensured that it stayed with them. His first over dismissal of skipper Gautam Gambhir was instrumental in preventing Kolkata from racing away to a quick start. Mumbai continued to bowl a tight line and length, as a result of which Kolkata never got into any sort of rhythm whatsoever during their tough chase. They needed one batsman to play a big innings, which never came.
Turning point of the game:The 20th over of Mumbai’s innings in which McLaren leaked 25 runs.
--By A Cricket Analyst
