IPL 2021: "Great to see Prithvi Shaw play with so much freedom" - VVS Laxman
Former cricketer and SRH mentor VVS Laxman shared his insights into the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in his column for The Times of India.
The 46-year-old was pleased to see Prithvi Shaw back in form. Shaw scored 72 runs from only 38 balls against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), helping his team get over the line by seven wickets.
Speaking about how losing his place in the Indian team brought out the best in Prithvi Shaw, VVS Laxman wrote:
"It was great to see Prithvi Shaw play with so much freedom in the second match. The volume of runs and the way he made them; suggest he is hurting from losing his place in the Indian team. That's great to see from a youngster who has so much cricket ahead of him," Laxman opined.
VVS Laxman also seemed delighted with the kind of start the tournament has had. Thus far, there have been close and enthralling games, keeping the fans on the edge of their seats. He was all praise for RCB's Harshal Patel, who returned with a five-wicket haul in the tournament opener.
"Season 14 of the IPL could not have asked for a better start. Defending champions Mumbai Indians and star-studded Royal Challengers Bangalore went toe-to-toe in the opener, the latter prevailing in a last-ball thriller. Harshal Patel was the star with his five-for, the perfect illustration of what the tournament intends to achieve."
"The IPL is a platform where talent meets opportunity. Harshal has been around for a while now, but performances like these on this stage do wonders for your confidence."
VVS Laxman disappointed with SRH's performance against KKR
The Sunrisers Hyderabad lost their opening game against the Kolkata Knight Riders by 10 runs, which seems to have hurt VVS Laxman. Talking about the performance in this game, he said:
"It was disappointing for us at Sunrisers Hyderabad to go down to Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday. The 10-run margin might suggest a close contest, and while it's true that we were two hits away from victory, I don't think this was a complete performance by any stretch of the imagination.
The bowlers will be especially hard on themselves. We pride ourselves on the strength and character of our bowling group, but we served up too many wide offerings in the Power Play and allowed Nitish Rana and Rahul Tripathi to get on top of us."
"The notable exception was the always-brilliant Rashid Khan. His mesmeric bag of tricks a treat to watch," VVS Laxman added.
VVS Laxman mentioned that the team didn't display the right kind of intensity against KKR but hopes to come back strongly.
"While we took our catches smartly, I felt we lacked the energy in the field that is generally our USP. Admittedly, it was the first match of the season and we have identified the areas that need work on. I am confident we will come back strongly in our next match against RCB on Wednesday," VVS Laxman wrote.