IPL 2021, SRH v KKR: 3 turning points of the match
The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) entered their first Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 fixture against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) with some bold changes in line with the conditions.
One of their mainstays - Sunil Narine - was left out to incorporate Shakib Al Hasan, and IPL veteran Harbhajan Singh got a look-in ahead of KKR's young pace duo of Shivam Mavi and Kamlesh Nagarkoti.
The first innings of the match appeared to vindicate their move - spin held the KKR batting back while they feasted on pace. However, the exchange was a little more complex than that - the spinners of both sides did occasionally get smashed over the short boundaries, and pace did create some nervous moments when pitched in the back-of-a-length area.
Ultimately, KKR held their nerve and held off the Orange Army. Here are the three biggest turning points of the SRH v KKR IPL match.
#3 Rashid Khan gets Andre Russell cheaply
Though T Natarajan opened the door for an SRH comeback with the wicket of the aggressive Rahul Tripathi, the stage was set for a massive finish, with Andre Russell walking out to bat and getting a freebie down leg first ball. It was then that SRH skipper David Warner chose to throw the ball one final time to his ace spinner Rashid Khan for a breakthrough.
Russell never quite looked comfortable, completely misreading a googly that went down leg for five wides. Two balls later, sensing he couldn't afford to play himself in, the West Indian tried going downtown, only for Manish Pandey to take a fine catch.
The incoming Eoin Morgan too couldn't quite get settled, and two further wickets fell in the next over - including that of the dangerous Nitish Rana, for 80 - to put to rest KKR's chances of going big at the death.
#2 SRH break loose against Andre Russell
The powerplay for both teams was quite disparate. KKR emerged from the six-over phase at fifty for no loss, whereas SRH were pegged back twice for 35 runs. However, SRH rebuilt rather quickly from that phase as Jonny Bairstow and Manish Pandey started finding their groove.
The first shot of dominance post the powerplay was a Pandey six off Shakib. It was the next over, bowled by Russell, where the SRH batsmen broke loose.
Russell abused the bouncer tactic and was dispatched by Bairstow towards the shorter boundary. Though the bowler got Bairstow to mistime one, SRH rode their luck as the ball took the top-edge to run away for four.
The 15-run over allowed SRH to match KKR for much of the innings, until...
#1 Pat Cummins brings KKR back with Bairstow scalp
Jonny Bairstow had just brought up his fifty, and had passed the spin test thrown at him by KKR skipper Eoin Morgan. It meant someone who has been effective against Bairstow in the past - Pat Cummins - was brought in to keep it tight and force Bairstow into a rash shot.
The tactic worked perfectly for KKR. Two singles later, Cummins banged the ball on a length consistently and tied Bairstow down for three dots. The SRH batsman lost his patience, slashing hard at the next one, only for Nitish Rana to take a sharp one.
Though Manish Pandey stuck around at the other end, the likes of Mohammad Nabi and Vijay Shankar could not strike the ball quite as cleanly, meaning SRH found themselves in trouble.