IPL 2017, KXIP vs SRH: 5 things that went wrong for Kings XI Punjab

The Kings XI Punjab lost to the Sunrisers Hyderabad by 26 runs in front of their home crowd in Mohali. Winning the toss, KXIP skipper Glenn Maxwell decided to bowl first, however, the Sunrisers opening duo of Dhawan and Warner completely blew the KXIP away right from the start as they stitched together an opening stand of 107 runs.

Both of them scored fifties and an innings of 57* from Kane Williamson powered the visitors to a score of 207/3 in their 20 overs.

Although the KXIP made a good start with Martin Guptill smashing 23 runs in his 11 deliveries, they gradually lost their way by losing wickets at regular intervals. Moreover, the early dismissal of Maxwell also cost them dearly as he had the ability to completely change the momentum of the match.

KXIP eventually made their way to a total of 181/9 in their 20 overs courtesy a fine knock of 84 from Shaun Marsh, however, it was not quite enough.

Let us take a look at what went wrong for the KXIP side in this match.

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#1 Spin should have been introduced much earlier to Dhawan and Warner

Spin should have been introduced right at the start of the Sunrisers innings as both Shikhar Dhawan and David Warner are vulnerable to right arm off spin. They have perished to off-spinners numerous times in the past and the introduction of spin at the start only adds to their nervousness.

However, by the time spin was introduced today, they had already got Sunrisers off to a flying start. Moreover, Warner perishing to Maxwell proved why he should have introduced his more than effective off-spin much earlier than he eventually did.

#2 Ishant Sharma leaked runs again in the death overs

Williamson took Ishant Sharma to the cleaners

Ishant Sharma’s inclusion in the KXIP playing XI again proved to be futile as he leaked 41 runs in his 4 overs without taking any wickets. He bowled well in his first three overs giving away only 21 runs at an economy rate of 7.00.

However, he leaked 20 runs in the penultimate over as he had no answer to ‘Hurri’-Kane Williamson’s aggressive yet classy batting. That one over made all the difference and shifted the momentum of the game completely away from the KXIP. Such was the impact of that over that KXIP could not recover from it.

#3 Openers failed to provide a good start

Vohra fell cheaply yet again

For a while, it looked like there was something special on the cards from Martin Guptill as he started off in a belligerent manner. He made his way to 23 runs off just 10 balls with the help of 4 fours and one humungous six before miscuing a knuckle ball from Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The ball went straight up into the air and was caught cleanly by Moises Henriques at cover.

Manan Vohra, meanwhile, again failed to deliver on his promise as he was dismissed cheaply for just 3 by Ashish Nehra. As a result, Punjab found themselves tottering on a score of 37-2 in the fourth over, chasing a stiff target of 208 runs.

It also looked like they missed Hashim Amla as he had been in a great run of form in the tournament.

#4 Glenn Maxwell’s dismissal

Maxwell failed when his team needed him the most

Maxwell was Punjab’s best bet to win this match considering his striking capabilities and also the volume of runs they were chasing. However, spectators wouldn’t have expected him to depart that early as he got out for a duck after facing only two deliveries.

Siddharth Kaul was really lucky to get away with a loose delivery down the leg side. Maxwell, much to his dismay, hit that loose delivery perfectly to Ashish Nehra standing at short fine leg. Thus with Maxwell’s departure, KXIP’s hopes of winning the match vanished.

#5 No support for Shaun Marsh

Marsh single-handedly took Punjab close to the target

The only silver lining for KXIP today was Shaun Marsh’s fine knock of 84 off just 50 deliveries, star-studded with 14 fours and 2 sixes. He looked to be in sublime touch with the bat middling every delivery.

However, the target turned out to be too much for him as he didn’t find able support at the other end. None of the batsmen – Vohra (3), Maxwell (0), Morgan (26) and Saha (4) – could offer him the support he needed. As a result, the pressure kept mounting on him and he was ultimately dismissed for a well-made 84 by none other than the Purple Cap holder Bhuvneshwar Kumar.