IPL 9 Match 28 Review: Kings XI Punjab stun Lions in their own den

Kings XI Punjab surprised the home crowd at the Saurashtra Cricket Association stadium after they overwhelmed the majestic Gujarat Lions by 23 runs. The Punjab side finally showed some character, displaying a dominating show, especially with the ball to break the string of losses this season.

KXIP after being put into bat by GL posted a target of 155 for the home team to chase with the help of Murali Vijay’s half-century and valuable contributions from David Miller (21 from 27 balls) and Wriddhiman Saha (33 from 19 balls).

So far, all three matches at Rajkot were won chasing but today was a different case as the KXIP bowlers led by left-arm spinner Axar Patel produced inspiring performances to tame the Lions in their den. Chasing a respectable 155 runs to win, GL batsmen looked very incompetent and were bundled out for 131/9.

The new look Kings XI Punjab, playing under the fresh leadership of Murali Vijay, made as many as 4 changes in the team. All-rounders Gurkeerat Singh and Marcus Stoinis, mystery man KC Cariappa and wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha swapped places with Manan Vohra, Mitchell Johnson, Pardeep Sahu and Nikhil Naik in the team.

Vijay with his new batting partner Marcus Stoinis opened the innings after being put into bat by GL. The pair built a fiery 65 run stand to give the perfect head start to the innings

Surprisingly, it was Vijay who showed first signs of aggression, targeting Praveen Kumar and hitting him for two fours in his first two. Stoinis, who comes with a T20 reputation, also joined the party after he welcomed Ravindra Jadeja with a six. The pair took KXIP to 59/0 at the powerplay stage. However, The GL spinners then pulled back brilliantly after the powerplay. The next three overs after the powerplay brought three wickets for the homes side.

Stoinis lost his wicket to Jadeja just 3 balls later. In the next over, chinaman Shivil Kaushik, who greatly impressed on his debut, snapped two wickets off successive balls in the 8th over. He claimed his maiden wicket in the form of Shaun Marsh and added one more to his tally after getting Maxwell caught behind. Gurkeerat Maan lost his wicket in the 9th over after he was run out at the wicket-keeper’s end.

By the half-way stage of the game, the KXIP run rate had dipped to 7.80 from 9.83 at the end of the powerplay. Vijay then forged with former skipper David Miller for a brief time. But, Kaushik, who had earlier missed a hat-trick, picked his third wicket after Vijay fell victim to him.

David Miller and Wriddhiman Saha became saviours and played beautiful cameos to help the team total before Praveen Kumar and Dwayne Bravo wiped off the tail-enders in the penultimate and final over to bundle out KXIP for 154 in 19.5 over.

The target looked bit easy considering the form in which the openers Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum in blistering form. The promising Sandeep Sharma broke the defences of McCullum and skipper Raina to give major breakthroughs.

Axar Patel then came in and produced a magical performance. The left-arm spinner picked 4/21 including a hat-trick to completely derail the Lions. After beginning his spell with a tight first over, The left-arm spinner made an immediate impact three wickets in his second over. The 3rd ball of the 7th over saw Smith getting caught by at long-of. A ball later, Patel snapped Dinesh Kartik and Dwayne Bravo off consecutive balls to end the over.

Jadeja and Ishan Kishan then hung around for a while before Axar was re-introduced in the 11th over who completed his hat-trick after he dismissed Jadeja off the first ball.

The match was now in the virtually in the pocket of the visitors. Ishan Kishan (27 from 24 balls) and James Faulkner (32 from 27 balls) delayed the victory moment for Punjab. But, eventually, the home side were restricted 131/9 after 20 balls, inflicting a 23 runs loss.

Brief Scores:

Kings XI Punjab: 154 in 19.5 (Murali Vijay 55; Shivil Kaushik 3/33)

Gujarat Lions: 131/9 in 20 (James Faulkner 32; Axar Patel 4/21)

Man of the Match: Axar Patel