IPL 2016 Final: Sunrisers Hyderabad will strategize to dismiss Virat Kohli, says Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar said that the team will strategize on getting Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli out, as the big-hitter has been in an incredible form this season. SRH beat Gujarat Lions in the second Qualifiers of the IPL, storming into the final of the tournament for the first time.
The 26-year-old had picked the wickets of opener Ekalavya Dwivedi and all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, bowling at an economy of 6.72. He admitted that the final match was going to put a lot of pressure on them. “We will definitely strategize because I read somewhere the other day that Virat Kohli has scored 35 per cent of RCB’s runs. It’ll be a big task for us to get (Chris) Gayle, Virat (Kohli) and AB (De Villers) and later, (Shane) Watson, out.
"We are hoping for a good contest. We’ll enjoy for now because we know there’s a pressure match coming up,” he added.
Kohli has been one of the main reasons behind RCB's success and had amassed 919 runs, the highest by a player in any season. Though he walked back for a duck in their last match against Gujarat, he had fired in the other three must-win matches, booking a place for his team in the final.
Also read: IPL 2016: Bhuvneshwar Kumar reveals how he became a quality death-bowler
SRH had missed out on the services of the young sensation Mustafizur Rahman in the second qualifier, who was rested after an injury, and the Kiwi left-arm bowler Trent Boult was brought in replacing him.
“Mustafizur did really well but losing him in a crucial game wasn’t good for us but Boult did very well. It’s a part of the game that he went for a few runs in the second last over. But if you look at him, he has really worked hard in the nets.
"He knew that there might be a chance for him to play either the semifinals or finals but you can’t say he has given runs; it’s a part of the game. Losing Fizz wasn’t good for us,” he added.
Apart from the fiery David Warner (93 off 58), Amritsar-born Bipul Sharma also played a crucial innings during the final overs, launching three sixes and making 27 off 11 balls to help the Sunrisers reach the target of 163 with four balls to spare.
“The last 4-5 overs when Bipul went into bat was the turning point. Warner needed support from the other end, which Bipul provided. It’s never easy to go out and score runs immediately, but Bipul hit. He told Warner that he would give him support when he went in to bat and that’s exactly what we wanted," he said.
SRH will be taking on RCB at the final of the ninth edition of the IPL on Sunday at the M.Chinnaswamy in Bangalore, where both the teams will contend to lift their maiden trophy.