Varun, Moeen stop RR to 151/9 on sluggish track
Guwahati, Mar 26 (PTI): Kolkata Knight Riders' spin duo of Varun Chakravarthy and Moeen Ali worked in perfect tandem to weave their magic, as a disciplined bowling effort restricted Rajasthan Royals to a below-par 151/9 in their IPL clash here on Wednesday.
On a dry and sticky Barsapara pitch where the ball wasn’t coming onto the bat, KKR’s new spin combination -- brought together due to Sunil Narine's injury -- proved to be their game-changer.
Chakravarthy and Ali dismantled the Royals' middle order, picking up two wickets each in successive overs right after the powerplay, shifting the momentum in KKR’s favour.
Chakravarthy, varying his pace masterfully, bowled out his quota with exceptional figures of 2/17, while Moeen Ali finished with a tidy 2/23 from his four overs.
Seamer Vaibhav Arora (2/33) was expensive but chipped in with two crucial wickets -- regular Royals skipper Sanju Samson (13 off 11) with a yorker in the powerplay before dismissing impact substitute Shubham Dubey (9) cheaply.
Harshit Rana (2/36) was instrumental at the death, breaking Dhruv Jurel’s promising innings of 33 (28) and removing the dangerous Shimron Hetmyer for just 7, both in the crucial penultimate over.
A quickfire cameo 16 from 7 balls from Jofra Archer ensured that they reached 150-mark but he fell to Spencer Johnson () in the penultimate ball of their innings.
Put in, RR had looked set for a big total at 54 for 1, with a well-set Yashasvi Jaiswal (29 off 24) and local lad Riyan Parag (25 off 15) at the crease.
Riyan, leading the Royals for the first time at his home ground, began with intent, smashing Harshit Rana for a six over square leg off just the third ball he faced.
Riyan, who knows the Barsapara pitch like the back of his hand, played the shot of the innings in the next over -- a beautifully timed lofted drive off Vaibhav Arora, sending the ball soaring straight down the ground.
Jaiswal, dropped on 19, capped off the powerplay with a six as RR finished the first six overs strongly at 54/1.
However, KKR struck back immediately. Chakravarthy, their mystery spinner, triggered the collapse in the seventh over, dismissing the dangerous-looking Parag with a well-disguised 113kph delivery.
Riyan mistimed his lofted shot, and the ball soared high into the night sky before Quinton de Kock calmly took the catch after removing his helmet.
Ali compounded RR’s troubles in the very next over by dismissing Jaiswal, who had looked in fine touch with two sixes and as many boundaries.
The England all-rounder continued his impact, getting rid of Wanindu Hasaranga (4), who had been promoted to No 5 but failed to make an impact, spooning a skiddy delivery straight to mid-off.
With four wickets falling for just 15 runs, RR’s innings never had the required momentum as they were at least 25 short of par-score.
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Experience comes when you play bigger teams in bilateral series: Rashid Khan
Chennai (PTI): Afghanistan skipper Rashid Khan called for more bilateral series against stronger cricketing nations after his team signed off from the T20 World Cup on a high, defeating Canada in their final group match here on Thursday.
Afghanistan played some exhilarating cricket, going down to South Africa in a gripping second Super Over after the scores were tied, a humdinger that provided one of the early thrills of the World Cup.
However, the spin-bowling stalwart said Afghanistan could make significant strides if they get regular opportunities to compete against stronger cricketing nations.
"Couple of areas to improve, with the batting, the middle order got a bit stuck against the big teams, and then with the bowling the death overs. That comes when you play the bigger teams in bilateral series," said Rashid after his team defeat Canada by 82 runs, with him returning excellent figures of 2 for 19.
The stalwart said the side had arrived well prepared for the tournament and produced some breathtaking cricket, but admitted the narrow defeat to South Africa proved costly and remained a painful setback.
"We were well-prepared (for the tournament), we played some unbelievable cricket. The game against South Africa, that really hurt everyone. We had to win one of those (first two) games and see how the tournament unfolded. We'll take some positive things from this World Cup and look forward," he said.
With head coach Jonathan Trott set to part ways with the team, Rashid described the departure as an "emotional" moment for the side.
"I think we had some wonderful times with him. Where we are now, he played a main role. It's emotional to see him leave us, but that's how life is. We wish him all the best and somewhere down the line we see him again."
Ibrahim Zadran, who was named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 95 off 56 balls, said it was satisfying to finally register a substantial score after two below-par outings.
"I enjoyed it, didn't play better cricket in first two innings, which I expect. Wanted to back my skills, really enjoyed it. Pressure was there, it's there all the time. I want to put myself in pressure situations and enjoy it," said Zadran.
"Wanted to play positive cricket, rotate strike and punish bad ball, create partnerships and this is what I have done."
