Deception is something that we always strive to avoid. None of us want to fooled by something that presents itself as very rosy, as face value deception is the most widespread. We have our ways to identify it, deal with it and uncover the farce, but when it comes to the Wankhede wicket most of us fall prey to this ‘face value’ deception.
The Wankhede wicket has always been a batting paradise, a road in the true sense, if you may. And while it did dish out a few sluggish ones this time round, the last league game here brought in normalcy as close to 460 runs were scored in 40 overs. With the same track being used for the qualifier as well, we had expected a run feast yet again. But it was not be.
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The batsmen found it extremely difficult to get the short, slower balls away, and only a Dhoni special could help RPS pile up 160 on the board, a modest total by the looks of it, but a monster one on this tricky track.
Mumbai were somehow still expected to chase it down, with the kind of depth they had in their batting. There were no such prominent demons in the RPS attack, ones that could pose a huge threat to this highly experienced Mumbai batting unit. But a new one cropped up last night, with the name of Washington Sundar. Sundar took 3 crucial wickets during the middle phase to completely rock the Mumbai batting line up, forcing them to play catch up cricket all along.
With the top order back in the hut, we had all expected another Pandya-Pollard special but the Pune bowling unit kept a very tight check on things, storming into the finals, without their talisman, Ben Stokes.
Mumbai Indians have another shot at the final, thanks to their number 1 position in the league, and would be hoping to take care of business in the right way on Friday.
Let’s get to our business now!
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
Two of the most balanced sides (a little bowling and top order dominated, but balanced nonetheless) take on each other in a must win game. A loss tonight could mean that all that hard work of the league stage would go down the drain. The big guys need to step up tonight.
KKR would be hoping to sort out their batting order for this game, as their middle order has been a complete absentee in the past 6 games, forcing the top order to do all the hardwork. Uthappa has had a dip in form, which can be mostly attributed to him being pushed down to the number 4 spot. Will KKR push Sunil Narine down the order and open with Lynn and Gambhir? We’ll have to find out.
SRH have most things sorted and would be hoping Yuvi is fit for this game.
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