Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) is still searching for a win in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 as they have suffered their fifth game in six outings to stay at the bottom of the points table. On the other hand, the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have made a stunning comeback after starting poorly to win their third match of the season. For SRH, Jonny Bairstow and David Warner almost sealed the game for the team as they added 160 runs for the opening wicket.
Earlier, SRH failed to reach a huge total despite reaching the tally of 160 in 150 overs as Bairstow and Warner had smashed the KXIP bowlers to all parts of the ground. The duo kept on adding the misery on the opposition bowlers who came into this game without picking any wicket against CSK a few days ago.
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With not much to do, the KXIP skipper, KL Rahul decided to go with Ravi Bishnoi in the 16th over and that changed the whole momentum of the innings. The young leg-spinner got the better of Warner first and then smartly made KL Rahul take the review against Bairstow in the same over to get rid of the England gloveman. This is where things turned on its head as SRH only managed to reach a total of 201 runs in their 20 overs.
KXIP began the chase with an unfortunate run-out of Mayank Agarwal as a result of a huge mix-up with KL Rahul and a lot of credit for that also goes to the scintillating fielding effort from Warner. Rahul looked comfortable in the middle and the pressure got to him after scoring only 11 runs off 16 deliveries. Nicholas Pooran then came out and played a blitzkrieg as he cleverly attacked the fifth bowling options of the opposition taking on Abhishek Sharma and Abdul Samad.
WATCH – Nicholas Pooran Smacked 4 sixes Of Abdul Samad
Despite losing quick wickets before Pooran’s blitz, KXIP were suddenly back in the game. Glenn Maxwell was looking to settle down at the other end but misjudged a single. However, the final nail in the coffin for Punjab was the 15th over by Rashid Khan, in which he got two wickets including Pooran. Eventually, Kings XI got bowled out for 132 in the 17th over of the innings to lose the game by 69 runs.
Match Summary:
Sunrisers Hyderabad – 201/6 in 20 overs (J Bairstow: 97, D Warner: 52; R Bishnoi: 3/29) defeated Kings XI Punjab – 132 all-out in 16.5 overs (N Pooran: 77; R Khan: 3/12, T Natarajan: 2/24) by 69 runs
Here’s how Twitter reacted:
Most times conceding 12 or fewer runs in an IPL match: (4 overs bowled)
4 times – RASHID KHAN [52 matches]
4 times – Dale Steyn [94 matches]#IPL2020 #SRHvKXIP— Sampath Bandarupalli (@SampathStats) October 8, 2020
A little reminder tonight of what Nicholas Pooran could be. If you knew him you'd like him to.
— Ian bishop (@irbishi) October 8, 2020
The ability to bowl wicket-taking deliveries in a T20 games without leaking a lot of runs. Rashid Khan is a phenomenon in this format. In a league of his own. #SRHvsKXIP #SRH
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) October 8, 2020
Rashid Khan has an economy rate of 4.83 after 24 overs in a tournament where big scores are an everyday occurrence. And oh, he's also taken 8 wickets. Freak! #SRHvsKXIP #IPL2020
— Gaurav Kalra (@gauravkalra75) October 8, 2020
Pooran in last 4 matches in #IPL2020:
25*(8)
44(27)
33(17)
77(37)The way he batted in the last four matches shows his talent – one of the best number 4 in the T20 format – he is lone warrior in the middle order of Kings Eleven Punjab.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) October 8, 2020
K L Rahul has looked weighed down by anxiety and the poor performances of his team. He's just not able to play his natural game. Such a lovely free scoring batsman, hope he can break out of this soon.
— Joy Bhattacharjya (@joybhattacharj) October 8, 2020
3 wickets in 4 overs for just 12 runs. That’s called Game. Set. Match. https://t.co/dHV1IQPMa8
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) October 8, 2020
Well done team @SunRisers & @rashidkhan_19 What a spell #welldone
— Naman Ojha (@namanojha35) October 8, 2020
