TALKING POINTS
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On most days, a total of 128 in a T20 innings will call for introspection. More so when the opposition manage to bowl them out with seven balls to spare. And eight out of ten batters lose their wicket while attempting attacking strokes. The hurt would be even more profound when the bowlers were able to make a match of it in the second innings and the opposition couldn’t chase the target down before the final over. “15 more runs and things could have been different” would have been the first thought. “Need one batter to hold his end up” would have been the assessment.
Brendon McCullum is not falling for any of it. "I actually loved the intent to be honest, I thought the intent was great. Honestly, I felt like we didn't have a lot of luck today.”
McCullum’s remarks clearly indicated that the approach of the Kolkata batters not only have the coach’s buy-in but is his brainchild. More so if we think about the method the two-time champions adopted to turn things around during the second-half of the previous season.
If there is one thing that comes close to being a kryptonite for T20 cricket, it is the impact of the toss. Chasing sides have won seven of the eleven games this season. The format has been favoring the chasing teams so much that it seems pointless to ask the captains what they want to do after winning the toss.
The only way to counter it for the sides batting first is to go all or nothing. Like what Kolkata tried against Bangalore. Or Rajasthan Royals against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Or Punjab Kings in both the games they have batted first.
In their third game of the season against Chennai, Punjab lost all their recognized batters with 17 balls to go. Even then they finished with a total of 180. A total that isn’t intimidating but substantial after being two down for 14. This was made possible with an all-out attacking intent throughout the batting line-up with minimal care about wicket preservation. The run-rate hovered around 10 while the mainstays were at the crease.
The drawback of such an approach is that it may seem borderline foolish in hindsight. Like with Andre Russell against Bangalore chasing a ball when he could have held himself back for the six remaining overs. Or Shahrukh Khan going aerial in the 13th over against Kolkata with the team already five down. But coaches can expect batters to counter their approach and risk convoluting their mindset or keep it simple and hope that the all-or-nothing approach works out in the long run. So far, they have gone for the latter.
You have one job
No team is better at role definition than Chennai Super Kings. Especially when it is for the players who have been around the circuit for a while. Hence, we saw Moeen Ali fit seamlessly in the XI last season. And now, Dwaine Pretorius has already had two impactful outings in his debut season.
Pretorius’ SOP is clearly defined. He has only one job. Come and bowl wide yorkers in the latter half and squeeze the life out of batting momentum. His execution almost won the game for Chennai against Lucknow and help restrict Punjab for below 200.
The South African has not been the only one to milk the tactic. Harshal Patel to Andre Russell, Navdeep Saini to Kieron Pollard, and Umesh Yadav to Liam Livingstone all used the same against the fiercest hitter of the cricket ball on crunch moments and came out triumphant.
With dew nullifying the spinners, there had to come a time when the fielding side evolved to adopt an approach that might work. Having witnessed its impact, it is only surprising that it took this long.
The sky is the limit
The expansion of IPL to ten teams came with a word of cautionary on dilution in standards. And the argument had merit and it still does. Most teams look thinly spread with not much to look into outside the first XI.
On a positive note, the dilution has resulted in unearthing a few gems who in an eight-team season would have either been warming the bench or their couch.
Lucknow’s own AB, Ayush Badoni has had an impact on both the games. Mumbai’s Tilak Varma played a knock so dominating that it made Ravichandran Ashwin celebrate his dismissal more suited to that of Steve Smith Down Under. Just when Punjab’s bowling attack seemed their Achilles’ heel, Vaibhav Arora came in and swung the ball both ways on debut to leave the defending champs stunned.
The shock and awe from the commentators from overseas on the budding talent in India is understandable. With each game presenting itself as an avenue for them to be stars overnight, the sky is the only limit.
