Amid all the noise about flat wickets and big sixes, this season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has occasionally produced pitches that have brought the bowlers into the contest.
The afternoon game between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders in Sunday’s Double Header proved once again that the bowlers, with a bit of support from the surface, can still keep the batters on a tight leash.
Hyderabad, the home team, looked good for a big score until the swashbuckling Australian Travis Head (61 off 28 balls) was at the crease, playing with incredible fluency.
But once the left-hander fell to Varun Chakravarthy (4-0-36-3), Kolkata staged a stunning fightback.
In perfect tandem with the veteran Sunil Narine (4-0-31-2), who also dismissed Ishan Kisan (42 off 29 balls), Chakravarthy set up the three-time champions’ seven-wicket win.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi (49 off 47 balls), skipper Ajinkya Rahane (43 off 36 balls) and Rinku Singh (22 not out off 11 balls) guided Kolkata home, but it was the bowlers who stole the limelight on Sunday.
Pace bowler Kartik Tyagi (4-0-30-2) also played his part well, earning the big scalp of Abhishek Sharma (15 off 10 balls).
But it was the guile of Chakravarthy and Narine that kept Kolkata’s playoff hopes still alive.
Their third straight win following the nightmarish start to the campaign took their points tally to seven from nine matches.
While this may still not be enough for Kolkata to grab a place in the playoffs, but their two spinners made a big statement on the debate over the playing surfaces.
That bowlers can still win matches in the IPL if they get a level playing field.
“I’ve been saying this every year. Initially, when IPL starts, the first four matches will be flat wickets. It’s very tough for spinners to come into the game. Happened for every spinner. Everyone found it tough. As the tournament goes on, spinners come into the game,” said Chakravarthy after receiving the man-of-the-match trophy.
After a poor start to the season, Chakravarthy has now taken 10 wickets in the past four matches.
Skipper Rahane was relieved after the fightback from Chakravarthy and Narine restricted Hyderabad to 165 all out — despite being at 105 for one in the ninth over.
“It was brilliant the way we came back with the ball. Looked like they would get 190-200. It was a good wicket to bat on. 190-200 would’ve been challenging to chase. But credit to our bowling unit, especially the spinners. They kept taking wickets,” Rahane said.
Narine, 37, on the other hand, became the first overseas bowler on Sunday to take 200 IPL wickets for a single team.
A legendary figure in the Kolkata Knight Riders, having played a big role in their three IPL triumphs (2012, 2014 and 2024), the West Indian wizard will be key to their hopes of reaching the playoffs again this season.
But even bowling magicians cannot bring dead wickets to life with their tricks alone.
They also need a bit of help from the pitch to put doubts in the batsmen’s minds.
Source: Khaleej Times