IPL 2018 Playoffs, SRH vs KKR: Hits and Misses

It was the penultimate game of this season of the IPL as Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad battled it out in the second Qualifier.

KKR won the toss and opted to field first. SRH made as many as three changes and also dropped Manish Pandey after his poor run.

SRH got off to a good start, as Shikhar Dhawan and Wriddhiman Saha put on 56 for the opening stand. But Kuldeep Yadav’s double strike (picking up big wickets of Dhawan and Kane Williamson), put SRH on the back foot.

Those wickets did derail the Sunrisers innings as the KKR spinners were very good once again.

But a blistering 10-ball cameo from Rashid Khan, propelled the ‘Men in Orange’ to 174.

Chasing a stiff target, Sunil Narine once again helped KKR get off to a flier as he got 26 off 13 balls. Chris Lynn and Nitish Rana looked good, but wickets at regular intervals pegged the home team back, and they eventually fell short by 13 runs.

Rashid Khan was magnificent as he turned the game with three key wickets in the middle-overs which turned the game decisively in SRH’s favour.

SRH qualified for the finals and will now face CSK on Sunday (May 27).

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#5 Miss: Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson was out caught behind for just 3

Kane Williamson has, by far, been SRH’s best batsman. He’s stood up in difficult situations and has scored consistently throughout the season. After scoring four successive fifties, Williamson got starts in the last two games but, failed to kick on.

In this game, Williamson walked out in the 8th over of the innings, after Shikhar Dhawan and Wriddhiman Saha had strung a 56-run opening stand.

As soon as he walked in, the SRH skipper tried to be busy at the crease by rotating strike. He pinched a single off his first delivery before sneaking a two with an elegant shot through the covers.

But, he was then undone by a very good wrong’un from Kuldeep, as the chinaman found the edge which was taken very well by Dinesh Karthik. In a big game, Williamson could manage just 3.

#4 Hit: Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav continued his good form as he took 2/29

Kuldeep Yadav who is India’s premier limited-overs spinner struggled and had an underwhelming first half of the IPL. But, as the tournament has approached its business end, he has raised his game and has been amongst the wickets.

He’s taken 7 wickets in his last 4 games (excluding this one), and has been economical as well.

Once again in this all-important Qualifier 2, Kuldeep has turned up well and delivered on the big stage. SRH were going well at 56/0 in 7 overs before the chinaman was introduced into the attack.

In his first over, Kuldeep dismissed SRH’s two key batsmen – Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson, as he broke the backbone of their batting line-up.

First, he had Dhawan plumb in front after the opener tried to sweep a full-length delivery. Then Williamson edged one to Dinesh Karthik, as he failed to pick the wrong’un from Kuldeep.

The 23-year-old spinner didn’t pick up another wicket but, kept things quiet from his end as he finished with figures of 2/29 in his four overs.

#3 Miss: Prasidh Krishna

Prasidh Krishna conceded more than 50 runs in his 4 overs and was disappointing.

Prasidh Krishna was roped in as a replacement for Kamlesh Nagarkoti. He didn’t play in the first half of the tournament, but once he made his debut, he has been very good, especially at the death.

The 22-year-old pacer from Karnataka has taken 10 wickets so far in the tournament, and has provided KKR with a reliable option.

However, Prasidh was very expensive in this game, as he conceded 56 runs in his 4 overs and also failed to pick up a wicket.

He conceded 18 runs in his first two overs, before the leaking a lot of runs at the death. The Karnataka pacer gave away 14 runs in his 3rd over, before he was taken apart by Rashid Khan in the final over of the innings.

Prasidh conceded a couple of fours and a couple of sixes as he leaked 24 runs, which gave SRH the momentum going into the change room.

#2 Hit: Shakib Al Hasan

Shakib Al Hasan's contribution might have been a quiet one but a significant one

Shakib Al Hasan hasn’t quite set the IPL on fire, but in the first half of the season, he was making some vital contributions.

However, in the last 4 games (that SRH had lost), the Bangladesh all-rounder has failed to perform with both bat and ball. He’s gone wicketless in three out of the last four games, and hasn’t contributed with the bat as well.

However, in what was a virtual semi-final, Shakib stood up and delivered for his team. He first contributed with the bat, as he made at good-looking 28, batting at No. 4. He stabilized the innings after Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson departed in quick succession.

And then with the ball, he was excellent. He combined very well with Rashid Khan in the middle-overs to choke KKR in the run-chase.

He bowled three overs and conceded just 16 runs, and also picked up the key wicket of KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik.

It was a superb all-around effort from the 31-year-old Bangladeshi.

#1 Hit: Rashid Khan

Rashid Khan was simply phenomenal in this game

Rashid Khan is a definite game-changer. He has turned quite a few games this year with the ball as he’s been SRH’s trump card throughout the season. However, his ability with the bat has been underrated and has hardly come to the fore.

But, in this crucial qualifier game, the 19-year-old Afghan brought his ‘A’ game with the bat. At one stage, it seemed that SRH might not even get to 155-160, but the 10-ball blitz from Rashid gave SRH hope as they posted a very competitive total of 174.

He struck 4 sixes and 2 fours, as he made 34 in just 10 deliveries. He tore apart Prasidh Krishna as along with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid plundered 24 runs.

He was then brilliant with the ball and in the field. He affected a brilliant runout where he fired a good throw from the deep to catch Nitish Rana short.

With the ball, he was once again phenomenal, as he took 3/19 in his four overs. After conceding just 3 runs in his first over, the Afghan leggie came back and cleaned up Robin Uthappa.

In his next two overs, he took the big wickets of Chris Lynn and Andre Russell to bring SRH back in the game. He also took a couple of catches in the final over of the game.

It was an excellent game for the young leggie from Afghanistan, as was fabulous all-around.