IPL 9, Qualifier 2: SRH v GL - 5 Talking Points

Sunrisers Hyderabad, cruising on their skipper David Warner’s match-winning half-century, defeated Gujarat Lions by 4 wickets to book their place in the finals against Royal Challengers Bangalore. It was a one-man show literally at the Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi. The GL side was put into bat by SRH after Warner won the toss and chose to bowl first. It was not an ideal way to begin for GL, who lost two quick wickets at that start. But, Aaron Finch (50 from 32 balls) then played an anchor’s knocks and helped his team reach a decent 162/7 after 20 overs. The chase took off on a shaky note after Dhawan and Henriques lost their wickets cheaply. However, skipper Warner then played an unbeaten 58 ball 93 runs knock to help his team win the game.

1.Aaron Finch plays the anchors role:

The start wasn’t great for Gujarat Lions. They experimented at the top by sending Eklavya Dwivedi to open the innings. The move, however, failed as he was dismissed cheaply. Skipper Raina also had an off-day. Dinesh Kartik and Brendon McCullum handled the pressure with a short partnership but both departed after getting set in the middle. Aaron Finch, who came in at No -5 after the fall of Kartik, then played a superb anchor’s knock, smashing a 32 ball 50. It was a counter-attacking knock from him. He received brief support from McCullum initially but then did the bulk of scoring after the Baz’s departure. Unfortunately, he could not carry his bat till the end and lost his wicket in the 18th over. The Lions scorecard would have been a bit different had Finch batted till the end.

2. Ben Cutting’s flying effort:

The SRH bowlers had complimented David Warner’s decision to bowl first by bowling tightly and keeping GL in control. GL were at 100/3 when Barinder Sran was handed the ball to bowl the 15th over. Ravindra Jadeja, who was at the strike, pushed a single and rotated the strike with the well-set Aaron Finch. Sran came over the wicket for Finch and pitches in a short one, Finch had no hesitation and heaved it towards the mid-wicket region. The ball, although it was mistimed, seemed to be flying beyond the fences. But, Ben Cutting then came into the scene and cut short the journey of the ball. Cutting, who was placed right on the edge of the boundary, dived backward in the air and pushed the ball inside the ropes just like a volleyball player does. It was a stunning effort which saved five runs for the team.

3. David Warner – The one man army:

The start was not ideal for SRH after they lost Shikhar Dhawan and Moises Henriques pretty quickly. But, David Warner, who has been a major reason why SRH are in the playoffs, took full responsibility of the chase and played a gem of a knock. The skipper opened the innings and carried his bat till the end of the innings to ensure that his team sails past Gujarat Lions and confirms a berth in the finals. It was a highly sensible knock from the temperamental cricketer. He went through a range of emotions during his unbeaten 58 ball 93 runs knock. During the strategic timeout, he seemed to be very upset and looked very vocal. Later, he was provoked by Praveen Kumar in a heated face-off. But, he did not overreact and remained focused to eventually finish his job with success.

4. Middle order flops:

SRH’s middle order has been fragile throughout the tournament. They have been blowing hot cold right from the start of the tournament.  After the shaky start, the hopes were on SRH middle order comprising of Yuvraj Singh, Deepak Hooda, Ben Cutting and Naman Ojha to perform. However, all of them were utter flops and put their team in a situation of bother in the chase. The four batsmen could contribute only 30 runs and threw their wicket at crucial stages leaving Warner tattering in the middle.

5. Bipul Sharma’s cameo:

Warner continued his fight back and led the chase wonderfully after the middle order failed miserably. But, it was impossible for him to take his team past the finishing line all alone. But, then came the unknown Bipul Sharma who played an outstanding 11 ball 27 run knock and provided Warner with crucial support. Bipul knocked important runs and struck timely fours and sixes while Warner kept clobbering the ball as SRH accelerated towards the win and eventually won the game. The left-arm spinner did not throw his wicket away and remained not out till end.

Also, Read – Twitter Reactions: Warner’s lightning knock takes SRH through to the final