- The 17th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has concluded with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) winning finals against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) with such ridiculous ease. The one-sided finals turned out to be an anti-climax of sorts as more was expected from the Hyderabad franchise to challenge the clinical Kolkata franchise. Every true fan of cricket would vouch in unison that Kolkata deserved to emerge as the eventual winners for the performance of the team was not only consistent right through the tournament but also very professionally executed by the players concerned. Of course, due credit should go to the support staff led by the team mentor Gautam Gambhir, and others as well for shaping up the winning team.
PC: Business Today
- Remember, any team sport demands equal performances from the players concerned in all respects. Agreed, individual performances do matter in winning causes, but it is the overall contributions of the entire team that take the team across the finishing lines. SRH did display a dazzling array of terrific cricket right from the word go. The opening batting pair of Travis Head and the emerging talent Abhishek Sharma set the IPL stage on fire with their unbelievable pyrotechnics of stroke play. The dreaded pair were sensational in going for the kill right from the first delivery. The strike rates of both the openers amply demonstrate how effective they were in combating the opposition bowlers. It was a terrific sight to behold.
- The captain of SRH Pat Cummins led the side admirably. However, when it mattered most, some of the batsmen could not come to the party on the day. South African batters Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klassen could not provide resistance or help build the score to set an imposing target for KKR to chase in the all-important finals. The reason for the SRH’s below-par score while batting first must go to the imposing presence and incisive bowling of pace spearhead Mitchell Starc. Mind you, Starc was under tremendous pressure at the beginning of the tournament as the pressure of living up to the expectations of the costliest buy in the IPL history weighed him down. A world-class performer in Starc rose to the occasion during the second half of the league expectedly.
PC: ESPNcricinfo
- A peach of a delivery to get rid of Abhishek Sharma in the first over of the finals would go down as the ball of the tournament. What followed afterward was a clinical strangling of the SRH batters by bowlers like Sunil Narine, Harshit Rana, and Varun Chakravarty. A special mention must be made about the way Sunil Narine has performed in the tournament both with the bat and the ball. He was devastating at the start of the innings and was most economical while bowling too. A word of praise must accrue to captain Shreyas Iyer for leading the side quite admirably. Batter Venkatesh Iyer too was in his element scoring crucial runs when the chips were down. Undoubtedly, KKR are the truly deserving winners. Yes, SRK was phenomenal in his support too.
