Captain Morgan, bowlers beat Monday blues to get past Punjab Kings
Ahmedabad, Apr 26: Skipper Eoin Morgan brought in a sense of calm after early jitters as Kolkata Knight Riders didn't let a brilliant bowling performance go in vain during their easy five-wicket victory over Punjab Kings in an IPL encounter on Monday.
After the bowlers put up a splendid show to restrict Punjab Kings to 123 for 9, KKR scored the runs in 16.4 overs with skipper Morgan remaining unbeaten on 47 off 40 balls.
For KKR, it was a collective bowling performance with Prasidh Krishna (3/30), Pat Cummins (2/31) and Sunil Narine (2/22) choked Punjab after the young Shivam Mavi (1/13) bowled an astounding 15 dot balls in his four over spell.
KKR has now ended their four-match losing streak and are placed fifth with four points from six games. Punjab Kings slipped a notch behind and are now at sixth place.
Chasing the paltry target on a dew-laden Motera, KKR found themselves in familiar territory as they lost top-three for 17 runs inside three overs.
But Morgan (4x4, 2x6) showed perfect intent to seize control with Rahul Tripathi in a 66-run partnership off 48 balls as KKR sealed the issue in 16.4 overs to return to winning ways.
Morgan pulled Shami over square to get off the mark with a maximum and there was no looking back.
He along with Tripathi used their feet and kept charging the Punjab bowlers as they just needed 48 runs in the final-10.
Tripathi could not finish it after an impressive 32-ball 41 as there was a bit of a blip with Andre Russell departing in addition of 15 runs but Morgan and Dinesh Karthik ensured that there's no further damage to cruise home with 20 balls to spare.
Earlier, Rana got out for a golden duck in the first over, gifting his wicket to Moises Henriques, chipping a wide full toss straight to Shahrukh Khan at cover.
Then the Indian cricket's blue-eyed boy, Gill, continued his woeful run after showing some glimpses of his class, trapped by Mohammed Shami.
Ravi Bishnoi then produced a spectacular diving catch, sprinting about 30 metres to dismiss Sunil Narine for a duck.
Earlier, youngster Mavi started it all, tying things down with the new ball, bowling 15 dot balls in his four overs on the trot, before Cummins and Prasidh tightened the noose sharing five wickets between them at the death.
The pace troika removed the top three KL Rahul (19), Chris Gayle (0) and Deepak Hooda (1) in space of 12 balls for six runs to leave PBKS in a disarray in the first 10 overs.
On a pitch, where the ball stayed low and gripped a bit, the Punjab batsmen failed to apply themselves with Sunil Narine (2/22) and Varun Chakravarthy (1/24) further denting their progress during the middle overs as well as back-end.
Prasidh had the best figures as he ended Chris Jordan's 18-ball 30 cameo which took the total past the 120-run mark.
Mavi capped a fine opening spell of four overs dismissing Chris Gayle for a golden duck with the 'Universe Boss' taking a bottom edge.
Bowling with the new ball, the youngster was superb in the Powerplay, conceding just nine runs from his three overs, never allowing the two star Punjab openers, Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul, to express themselves.
The pressure was evident on Rahul when he perished after trying to break free against Cummins in the final over of Powerplay.
The dangerous Deepak Hooda (1) got out courtesy a stunning low catch by Eoin Morgan as Punjab had a terrible start losing three wickets in 12 balls for six runs.
Amid ruins, opener Mayank Agarwal scored a painstaking 31 off 34 balls which also halted the team's momentum.
At that point, Morgan used Narine to great effect as the Trinidadian dismissed Agarwal and Moises Henriques in successive overs to push them behind further.
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India beat Ireland by 304 runs in third women's ODI
Rajkot, Jan 15: Records tumbled like nine pins as the Indian women's cricket team, powered by skipper Smriti Mandhana's 70-ball century, demolished Ireland by a whopping 304 runs to claim its biggest-ever ODI win and complete a 3-0 clean sweep here on Wednesday.
The result of the match was a mere formality once India set Ireland a massive target of 436, and Ireland could only garner 131 before getting bundled out in 31.4 overs.
India put the first step forward towards a crushing victory through record-breaking Mandhana (135, 80b, 12x4, 7x6) and her opening partner Pratika Rawal (154, 129b, 20x4, 1x6), reaching 435/5, highest total by an Indian team — men’s or women’s — in ODIs.
India men's highest ODI total is 418/5 made against the West Indies in Indore in 2011.
Mandhana and Rawal added a whopping 233 runs for the first wicket in just 26.4 overs and there was no looking back.
Then spinners Tanuja Kanwar (2/31) and Deepti Sharma (3/27) took over, sharing five wickets among them to decimate the Irish line-up, which was well short on experience.
Orla Prendergast (36) and Sarah Forbes (41) added 64 runs for a fluent third wicket stand that helped Ireland to recover from a shaky 24 for two to reach 88 without further damage.
But once Prendergast was cleaned up by Kanwar, India were all over the tourists like a bad rash, claiming the remaining seven wickets for just 33 runs.
It also helped India eclipse their previous largest margin of victory (by runs) — 249 registered against the same opposition in 2017 at Potchefstroom, South Africa.
Mandhana’s 10th ODI century came off just 70 deliveries as the left-hander surpassed Harmanpreet Kaur’s 87-ball hundred mark against South Africa last year.
It also set the tone for India breaching the 400-run mark for the first time, joining Australia and New Zealand in that elite list.
Mandhana was in her usual destructive self, and was not afraid to take the aerial route over the 'V' and clear the 30-yard circle.
Pratika complemented her captain brilliantly with a measured knock, making the occasion even more special by notching her maiden international century in her sixth innings.
Pratika relied on precise placement and deft touches in the point region and she showed her aggression only after reaching the ton, hitting Freya Sargent for her first six.
Demonstrating hunger for a bigger knock, she powered her way to an impressive 150 — a perfect blend of composure and aggression.
Their 233-run partnership made them only the fourth Indian pair to record a 200-run stand in Women’s ODIs.
It was also the third instance of both Indian openers scoring hundreds in ODIs, following Reshma Gandhi and Mithali Raj’s feat at Milton Keynes in 1999 and Deepti and Raut’s partnership at Potchefstroom in 2017 -- all against Ireland.
The duo added 90 runs during the Power Play and 67 in the subsequent 10 overs, maintaining a brisk scoring rate.
Mandhana reached her first century of the calendar year with an exquisite drive off Arlene Kelly.
Kelly bore the brunt of her onslaught, conceding successive sixes in one over.
Even Kelly’s variations, including back-of-the-hand deliveries, were dispatched with ease, with the Indian batter following a six with another boundary in the 24th over.
Mandhana also took on Ireland’s leading bowler, Prendergast, smashing her for a boundary down the ground and a towering six over long-on.
Promoted to No. 3, Richa Ghosh also returned to form, making a 37-ball fifty, her fifth in ODIs.
