IPL 2022: Top 3 Marcus Stoinis knocks in the IPL
The 42nd clash of the ongoing IPL 2022 is set to take place on Friday, April 29, at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune between the Punjab Kings and the Lucknow Super Giants. This season, LSG have won five and lost three matches, while PBKS have won four and lost four.
Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Liam Livingstone have all been in ultimate form with the bat for Punjab, while Arshdeep Singh and Kagiso Rabada have been brilliant with the ball.
On the other side, skipper KL Rahul has been the second-highest run-scorer in the league with two centuries in the last three innings. Jason Holder and Krunal Pandya have done equally well with the ball. While Lucknow's top order is intact, the team needs its finishers to peak - especially a particularly dangerous one at the end, Marcus Stoinis.
Having played 60 IPL games, the Australian all-rounder has scored 986 runs and is 14 short of joining the league's 1,000-run club. Moreover, Stoinis has always been capable of turning a match upside down in no time and on that note, let's take a quick look at three of his most spectacular knocks in the history of the tournament.
#1 53 (21) - DC vs PBKS in IPL 2020
The 2020 season was one of the best editions for Marcus Stoinis as Delhi Capitals reached the final that year. Stoinis scored more than 350 runs in IPL 2020 and was one of the key reasons DC reached the final.
In the second match of IPL 2020, when DC faced the Punjab Kings, the latter decided to bowl first. Openers Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan were dismissed for under 10 runs and pressure was on the middle order.
While then skipper Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant tried to weave a partnership, they couldn't sustain it for long and needed someone at the death to get them to a defendable total. That's when Marcus Stoinis stepped in.
Stoinis took on the Punjab bowlers from the start, blasting them all over the ground to score one of the fastest fifties in the IPL. In just 20 deliveries, Stoinis brought up his half-century laced with seven fours and three sixes. The Australian power-hitter took DC to a total of 157/8.
With Mayank Agarwal's 89 (60), Punjab were able to get close to the target but Stoinis' 2/29 and contributions by the other bowlers helped DC tie the match, leading to a Super Over.
Kagiso Rabada gave away only two runs in the Super Over and DC achieved the target with ease.
#2 53* (26) - DC vs RCB in IPL 2020
In the 19th clash of IPL 2020, Marcus Stoinis proved his worth as a finisher yet again. At the Dubai International Stadium, RCB won the toss and asked DC to bat. Openers Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan got them off to a flying start and stitched together a 68-run stand.
Shaw and Dhawan soon fell, followed quickly by Shreyas Iyer. While Rishabh Pant held his ground from one end, the total wasn't enough to defend. Yet again, it was Stoinis to the rescue.
The Australian all-rounder scored an unbeaten 53 off 26 balls, including six boundaries and two maximums, to help Delhi reach 196/4. Despite Virat Kohli's valiant efforts, the Delhi bowlers proved too mighty for the Bangalore batsmen who kept tumbling one after the other.
Thanks to Kagiso Rabada's 4/24, RCB folded up for 137/9 and DC won the game by a whopping 59 runs.
#3 65 (46) - DC vs MI in IPL 2020 Qualifier 1
IPL 2020 finalists, Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals had some of the most interesting clashes throughout that edition. When the two teams met in Qualifier 1 of the playoffs, what went down was a treat to watch.
DC won the toss and elected to bowl and sent Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma back for a duck, too. But Suryakumar Yadav, Quinton de Kock, and Ishan Kishan's collective efforts directed Mumbai towards a big total. Hardik Pandya's quick cameo of 37* (14), including five sixes, helped MI reach 200/5.
In response, Delhi's top three were dismissed for ducks and DC found themselves in a sticky situation. Marcus Stoinis came in with the intention of fighting and so he did, putting up a 71-run partnership with Axar Patel.
Stoinis scored 65 (46), laced with six fours and three sixes, but the moment he fell to a brilliant Jasprit Bumrah delivery, Delhi's fate was sealed. The Capitals may have fallen short of the target by 57 runs but Stoinis had left his mark on the entire 2020 season.