IPL 6: CSK v/s KKR – Heroes of the Match

The Kolkata Knight Riders continued their miserable run of results, losing their 6th game of the tournament out of 9 played. For the home side though, it was an excellent result, one which takes them to the top of the table, and they seem to be peaking at the right time. Many players delivered good performances for their respective sides today, and in spite of the result going the way of the Super Kings, here are those who did best:

Michael Hussey – Oozing class

Key stats: Batting figures – 95 off 59 (11 fours, 2 sixes); Run-outs effected - 1

One of the classiest players you will ever see on the cricketing field, Michael Hussey continued his good run with the bat, contributing many a miles to CSK’s cause, as he has been over the years. He made batting look easy against a respectable attack, albeit on a pitch which did little to help the bowlers, and got rid of Manvinder Bisla with a direct hit at the stumps which caught the batsman short of his crease. He now has 445 runs in this tournament, just five lesser than leading scorer, Chris Gayle, who has played an innings extra, and has not been nearly as consistent as this Australian star. Teams will have to begin formulating a plan for him as well, or he will take the game away from them, every single time.

Suresh Raina – Delivering the goods

Key stats: Batting figures - 44 off 25 (4 fours, 1 six)

There’s something about the way that Suresh Raina conducts himself on the field that is very endearing; be it his constantly busy approach with bat in hand, energetic stops in the field, or those rare occasions where turns his arm over with a smile. His very presence seems to uplift the men in yellow, and their fans, and it is thus no surprise that he hasn’t missed a game yet for the franchise. He has struggled a bit with the bat this season, however, but showed no signs of it today, scoring a quick 44 to help his team to 200, and in retrospect, might have been the differentiating factor between the two teams.

Manvinder Bisla – There’s something about CSK

Key stats: Batting figures – 92 off 61 (14 fours, 2 sixes)

There’s something about CSK which seems to bring out the best in Bisla. Coming off a good half century, the Knight Riders’ ‘keeper was clean-bowled off the first legal delivery he faced, but perhaps only because it was a free hit that he was going all out after. He seemed quite comfortable at the crease for the remainder of his innings, smacking the ball around responsibly, and scoring at a brisk pace with little risk. Very unfortunate to have been run-out at a crucial juncture in the game, as the Knight Riders desperately missed a set batsman in the final over of the game.

Chris Morris - Rocketing into the limelight

Key stats: Bowling figures – 3.0 – 0 – 29 – 1

While the first two overs that Morris bowled were nothing too special, there was one delivery which was, being aimed at Gambhir’s leg-stump at yorker length, and got rid of the KKR captain. If that was insufficient contribution, Morris came up with six more yorkers in the final over of the game, conceding just 4 runs where the opposition needed 19 in one of the finest displays of death-bowling seen in cricket. The batsmen facing up to him were no mugs either, being Eoin Morgan and Yusuf Pathan, making his over seem even more special. As a commentator rightly said, plenty of people would have sat up and taken notice of this performance, and it just might prove to be a launchpad for his international career.