It's March, 2010 and our wait for the third edition of the Indian Premier League is finally over. This time the League is back in India and it got off to a good start at the D.Y Patil Sports Stadium in Navi Mumbai. The opening ceremony presented a mixed-bag of music, acrobatics, light shows etc, but the serious business of the tournament started at 8pm when the Kolkata Knight Riders walked out after being put in to bat by the Deccan Chargers skipper Adam Gilchrist.
Kolkata started disastrously when Chaminda Vaas picked up the wickets of Manoj Tiwary and the reinstated captain of Kolkata Sourav Ganguly, in the very first over. Cheteshwar Pujara played a few good shots to show his talent but he fell in the 5th over and was soon followed by Brad Hodge. 31 for 4 would have surely got back the memories of the last season for Kolkata but Owais Shah and Angelo Mathews were out there to change it. Mathews started in streaky fashion when he top edged his first ball over the keeper’s head for six. The two batsmen were then just working the ball around until the 15th over when they started to go after the bowling. They took the score to 161 which had looked a distant dream during the 6th over. Mathews compiled a well made 65 which included 5 fours and 4 sixes. Owais Shah was his usual unorthodox self, hitting the ball uncanny areas. He ended with 58, which included 3 fours and 3 sixes.
Deccan Chargers may have felt that they would have conceded too many but nevertheless would have been confident with the line up that they have. Adam Gilchrist and VVS Laxman started the innings in blistering fashion. They raced away to 61 before Laxman top edged Murli Kartik while trying to go for the big one. In came Herchelle Gibbs and he was mainly rotating the strike. Adam Gilchrist showed no signs of rustiness and reached his fifty. Deccan looked on course at 99 for 1 but then Gilchrist holed out in the deep and that’s where the slide began for his team. Gibbs followed him an over later when he tried to clear the fence and it was again left to Rohit Sharma to take his side through. Sharma could not repeat his performance of the last edition against the same opponents this time around. He fell for 13 and Deccan eventually lost the game by 11 runs. Not the result one would have expected but yes, it is Kolkata who will celebrate today.
I have made a few observations regarding this game. Firstly, I do not think that Manoj Tiwary should open the batting. In domestic cricket, he is known to come at no.3 or in the middle order and that’s where I think he would be comfortable. Opening the innings with Hodge is a good plan as he is the highest run scorer in T20 cricket and his experience in this format will add value to the Knight Riders. It will be interesting to see what will happen when Chris Gayle comes. Shah and Mathews have performed well in this game, Hodge is a key player for KKR and Langeveldt also is a smart customer in the death. Thus, just 4 overseas players being allowed, it will be interesting to see who will sit out and what’s more is that Shane Bond will also arrive in the KKR camp soon. Coming back to KKR’s batting, I think Pujara should be given more chances in this tournament. He looked good today for his 10 and showed class especially while playing those cover drives. Mathews played a gem of a knock; he kept the score ticking around and played the big shots when necessary. Credit should also be given to Owais Shah as he held the innings together. He was slow to start with but then picked up with some massive hits. His sixes behind square were really special and it shows how destructive he can be in this format. Deccan on the other hand has more to worry. Firstly, RP Singh would have to find his rhythm pretty soon. He was one of their key to their success last year and would be crucial this year as well. Gilchrist and Laxman looked good. Laxman surprised some of us with the shots he played. The six he hit down the ground was a slog hit with Laxmanesque elegance and not to forget the boundaries he hit on the off side. However, the main worry for Darren Lehmann and Gilchrist would be the form of their middle order batsmen. Sharma, Symonds and Gibbs have to discover their touch soon. Sharma has been very good during the domestic season and looked decent in the ODI against the Proteas but the way he got out today was disappointing. He looked like he was playing a tennis shot and he immediately knew what he had done. Gibbs hasn’t been in the best form off late but with his ability that is just an inning away. He had a start today but didn’t capitalise. Symonds on the other hand didn’t look like himself. The bat turned in his hand as he tried to hit Inshant Sharma out of the ground. I think, the Deccan would concentrate on this and would come back strongly in the matches to come. They are a strong team and are yet to get Scott Styris and Kemar Roach. Meanwhile, Kolkata will celebrate. They fought hard with both bat and ball, Mathews being the trump card. They will take confidence from this win when they take on Bangalore at Eden Gardens. It will be a contest to watch. Deccan will go to Chennai introspecting and noting down their mistakes. They will surely make efforts to correct them.
On day 2 of the Indian Premier League, we have a double header. First up, it is the Mumbai Indians who will take on Rajasthan Royals at 3pm at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai. The second game is between Kings XI Punjab and the Delhi Dare Devils at Mohali. This game will begin at 8 pm, until then, bye.
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