Champions League Twenty20: Five thrilling finishes
There is no denying the fact that the Champions League Twenty20, in its fifth season, has provided a lot of thrills to the crowds, who have taken to the shortest format of the game like a duck to water.
In its short history, the CLT20 has, arguably, seen more tight finishes than the World Twenty20 Championships. Here is a list of five of the best of those last-gasp humdingers:
Kieron Pollard
5. Trinidad & Tobago v/s New South Wales Blues (Hyderabad, October 16, 2009)
This was the game that heralded the arrival of two new superstars – NSW’s David Warner and T&T’s Kieron Pollard – as the two sides battled it out for supremacy on a balmy pre-Diwali night at Hyderabad.
Warner, along with opening partner Phil Hughes, assaulted the Caribbean bowlers viciously, using his powerful forearms and low centre of gravity to dispatch the ball into the stands with gay abandon. Hughes also joined the party, though he preferred scoring along the ground. Their century partnership eventually took the Blues to a commanding score.
T&T were in all sorts of trouble during the chase, losing wickets at regular intervals. Pressure mounted as the asking rate showed no signs of reduction, forcing batsmen to play loose strokes. They were six down by the 16th over, still needing a lot more for a win.
In strode the giant Pollard, willow in hand, marking his guard in the typical West Indian fashion of using a bail. NSW skipper Simon Katich tossed the ball to all-rounder Moises Henriques – a move that backfired big-time.
Pollard let loose a series of crunching shots, dispatching the European-born seamer’s second ball over long-off, then turned his attention towards point and mid-wicket where he collected more runs for his team. He finally finished off the game in the 19th over with two more huge hits, sparking celebrations in the T&T dug-out and firecrackers all over the park.
At the end of the game, NSW’s management approached the 22-year old explosive hitter and attempted to sign him to their roster; such was the impact of his murderous hitting. T&T entered the final, where they lost to the same opposition – but Pollard had won hearts.