Deccan charge to narrow win
Sohal scores quickfire half-century as Chargers register second victory in the IPL.
NEW DEHLI:
Deccan Chargers revived their Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign with a close 16-run win over Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
Deccan, who had just one win in four games before this, were boosted by Sunny Sohal’s maiden T20 half-century as the opener added 92 with captain Kumar Sangakkara to put his team ahead.
It looked as though the Chargers would finish close to 200 before Delhi pulled back with wickets at regular intervals. The Sri Lankan was the first to go for 49, made off 35 balls, before Sohal was dismissed in the 15th over after a well-made 62.
Sohal, named man of the match, was ecstatic after his performance that lifted Deccan.
“I’ve played here before but could not score much but this was different. Our captain gives us the confidence and tells us to go out and have fun in the middle.”
And Sohal did have fun before Cameron White hit two boundaries and one six as Deccan finished with 168 for four at the end of the innings.
The home crowd thought that the captain Virender Sehwag would provide fireworks needed to overhaul the target, but they were left disappointed. The Indian opener was dismissed by Harmeet Singh, playing his first IPL match of the season, and the blow shattered Delhi.
Scoring was made difficult as Singh and Daniel Christian reduced Delhi to 38 for three. David Warner and Venugopal Rao provided brief entertainment but with the run-rate climbing every over due to Deccan’s disciplined bowling, it made the task difficult.
Warner and Rao were dismissed in the space of nine runs before Pragyan Ojha sent back Irfan Pathan. The writing was on the wall and a miracle was required to lift Delhi. Yogesh Nagar and James Hopes put on 32 but the effort was not enough and though the 16-run difference might not seem too much, Delhi were never truly in the hunt.
With the much-needed win, Deccan Chargers now have two wins in five games while Delhi Daredevils struggle near the bottom with one victory to show from four matches.
Sangakkara, the Deccan captain, singled out Sehwag’s dismissal as the key.
“I feel a lot better now that we’ve won. Everyone chipped in and we were lucky to get Sehwag. I think the youngsters like Sohal have to enjoy themselves when they go out to the middle, at the same time they have to keep learning.”
Defending champions go down
Kochi Tuskers Kerala registered their second successive win in the IPL after they beat defending champions Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets. The Duckworth Lewis adjusted target of 135 in 17 overs was easy sailing for the IPL newcomers after New Zealand’s Bredon McCullum gave Kochi the perfect start.
The wicket-keeper hit 47 off 33 deliveries as the hosts crossed the finish line in 15 overs. McCullum added 39 with Mahela Jayawardene for the opening wicket and then put on 51 with Parthiv Patel to bat Chennai out of the game. Ravichandran Ashwin dismissed McCullum and Doug Bollinger got rid of Patel but by then it was too late.
Brad Hodge and Ravindra Jadeja finished the job putting on the remaining 25 in two overs as Chennai lost their second match in four games.
Earlier, Suresh Raina propelled Chennai to a competitive 131 off 17 overs with an impressive half-century. The left-handed India batsman hit five fours and a six but got little support from the other end. Murali Vijay hit a quick 18-ball 28 but disciplined bowling ensured Kochi were set a target that became too easy for
Kochi.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20th, 2011.
Deccan Chargers revived their Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign with a close 16-run win over Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium.
Deccan, who had just one win in four games before this, were boosted by Sunny Sohal’s maiden T20 half-century as the opener added 92 with captain Kumar Sangakkara to put his team ahead.
It looked as though the Chargers would finish close to 200 before Delhi pulled back with wickets at regular intervals. The Sri Lankan was the first to go for 49, made off 35 balls, before Sohal was dismissed in the 15th over after a well-made 62.
Sohal, named man of the match, was ecstatic after his performance that lifted Deccan.
“I’ve played here before but could not score much but this was different. Our captain gives us the confidence and tells us to go out and have fun in the middle.”
And Sohal did have fun before Cameron White hit two boundaries and one six as Deccan finished with 168 for four at the end of the innings.
The home crowd thought that the captain Virender Sehwag would provide fireworks needed to overhaul the target, but they were left disappointed. The Indian opener was dismissed by Harmeet Singh, playing his first IPL match of the season, and the blow shattered Delhi.
Scoring was made difficult as Singh and Daniel Christian reduced Delhi to 38 for three. David Warner and Venugopal Rao provided brief entertainment but with the run-rate climbing every over due to Deccan’s disciplined bowling, it made the task difficult.
Warner and Rao were dismissed in the space of nine runs before Pragyan Ojha sent back Irfan Pathan. The writing was on the wall and a miracle was required to lift Delhi. Yogesh Nagar and James Hopes put on 32 but the effort was not enough and though the 16-run difference might not seem too much, Delhi were never truly in the hunt.
With the much-needed win, Deccan Chargers now have two wins in five games while Delhi Daredevils struggle near the bottom with one victory to show from four matches.
Sangakkara, the Deccan captain, singled out Sehwag’s dismissal as the key.
“I feel a lot better now that we’ve won. Everyone chipped in and we were lucky to get Sehwag. I think the youngsters like Sohal have to enjoy themselves when they go out to the middle, at the same time they have to keep learning.”
Defending champions go down
Kochi Tuskers Kerala registered their second successive win in the IPL after they beat defending champions Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets. The Duckworth Lewis adjusted target of 135 in 17 overs was easy sailing for the IPL newcomers after New Zealand’s Bredon McCullum gave Kochi the perfect start.
The wicket-keeper hit 47 off 33 deliveries as the hosts crossed the finish line in 15 overs. McCullum added 39 with Mahela Jayawardene for the opening wicket and then put on 51 with Parthiv Patel to bat Chennai out of the game. Ravichandran Ashwin dismissed McCullum and Doug Bollinger got rid of Patel but by then it was too late.
Brad Hodge and Ravindra Jadeja finished the job putting on the remaining 25 in two overs as Chennai lost their second match in four games.
Earlier, Suresh Raina propelled Chennai to a competitive 131 off 17 overs with an impressive half-century. The left-handed India batsman hit five fours and a six but got little support from the other end. Murali Vijay hit a quick 18-ball 28 but disciplined bowling ensured Kochi were set a target that became too easy for
Kochi.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 20th, 2011.