IPL 2024: Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s masterclass helped SRH fend off a Jaiswal-Parag counter. (BCCI)
Rule change anyone?
With 2 runs needed off the last ball for RR to win, Bhuvneshwar Kumar sent down a low full toss to Rovman Powell. A huge appeal followed even as the batters were completing a run. But slowly, the umpire’s finger went up. Powell was given out. He reviewed (pointless, we will get to that) the decision and technology confirmed it was the right call. Powell was plumb after all.
Now imagine this scenario. RR need 2 off 1 ball. Bhuvi bowls the same delivery, but this time Powell gets an inside edge. The umpire gives it out. Alas, RR would have STILL lost the match anyway because the rules say the ball would have been dead, so at best it would have been a dot ball even though the decision was wrong. As clause 20.1.1.3 of the playing conditions goes, “a ball is dead when a batter is dismissed. The ball will be deemed to be dead from the instant of the incident causing the dismissal.”
It is a disaster waiting to happen. Maybe a World Cup final needs to be decided this way for it to change. Remember boundary count, anyone?
Jumps of Joy in Hyderabad 🥳
Terrific turn of events from @SunRisers‘ bowlers as they pull off a nail-biting win 🧡
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/zRmPoMjvsd #TATAIPL | #SRHvRR pic.twitter.com/qMDgjkJ4tc
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) May 2, 2024
Strangling them with spin
Sunil Gavaskar was adamant on commentary that a team should start its bowling innings with its best men. And while Rajasthan Royals opening with Trent Boult was a no-brainer, given the propensity of the Kiwi left-armer to get wickets in the first over, giving Ravichandran Ashwin the second one could be described as a left-field move. Sunrisers Hyderabad were coming into the game after two losses in a row and Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma aren’t at their best while starting against spin, especially when the ball is turning away from them. And there was some purchase for the veteran Indian off-spinner. Abhishek went down the pitch to him and hit him over the sight-screen without getting to the pitch of the ball, but the two left-handers were tentative against Ashwin otherwise, the ball beating the outside edge and even going over the stumps once. The Aussie opener survived an LBW appeal only on umpire’s call and seemed to have little clue. Sunrisers were denied the rollicking start they were after and even lost a couple of wickets due to the pressure put on them. It showed the homework and pre-match preparation the Rajasthan Royals think tank does before every game.
Unreal decision
Travis Head’s night started with a fielding mishap (when Riyan Parag dropped a sitter first ball) and it should have ended with a fielding brilliance. The SRH opener was lax in getting back to the crease after getting beaten by Avesh Khan and Sanju Samson smartly rolled the ball onto the stumps. It looked out in real-time. It looked out-ER on replays. After asking for repeated zooms, in an explicable decision, TV Umpire Rohan Pandit said Head’s bat was grounded. Kumar Sangakkara couldn’t believe in the RR dugout. Jos Buttler was signaling for a review of the review (Ashwin would have liked that!). But play carried on. Avesh however would have the wicket against his name instead of a run out, as Head moved over to the offside and played the ball onto the middle stump with expert precision. “Karma strikes,” said Sunil Gavaskar on air.
Drops cost dear
With every run and boundary Yashasvi Jaiswal and Riyan Parag scored, Pat Cummins and Abhishek Sharma would be churning inside. Rajasthan Royals were 1 for 2 after the first over, after Bhuvneshwar Kumar gave Sunrisers Hyderabad the perfect start to the second innings. If Cummins and Abhishek had held on to the relatively catchable chances that came their way, both Jaiswal and Parag would have been back to the dugout inside the Powerplay. Neither youngster gave much chance to the bowlers or fielders thereafter in their 134-run stand. The asking rate was more than 10 runs an over when the chase began, and the two never let it go beyond that. Even after Jaiswal was dismissed, it did nothing to slow Parag down. His full-blooded swing of the bat, against seamers and spinners alike, took the ball over the rope even when it didn’t come off the middle of the bat.
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