Varun makes stellar comeback, Mayank Yadav promising debut as India dismiss Bangladesh for 127
Gwalior, Oct 6: Pace sensation Mayank Yadav made a promising debut and mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy an impressive comeback as India limited Bangladesh to 127 in the opening T20 of the three-match series here on Sunday.
A full house at the newly built Shrimant Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Stadium witnessed high quality bowling from India and largely ordinary batting from their opponents.
All eyes were on Mayank (1/21) ever since he marked his run up before toss and the 22-year-old from Delhi did not disappoint in his first competitive game in more than five months.
Having attracted global eyeballs for consistently bowling in the 150kmph range during the IPL, Mayank was able to generate serious pace in his opening spell of 2-1-3-1.
Having suffered a side strain shortly after a sensational IPL debut, there were question marks over his fitness in the long term but he dispelled some of those doubts on Sunday.
Mayank was able to hit 145.7 kmph only in his second ball of the evening before hitting 148.7 kmph with the first ball of his second over.
Veteran batter Mahmudullah was among the batters who were wary of his extra pace and ended up becoming the pacer's first international wicket. The 38-year-old tried to improvise by charging down the wicket but ended up slicing a regulation catch to Washington Sundar at deep point.
Varun (3/31), brought back into the team after nearly three years, troubled the Bangladesh batters who failed to read him. Among them was middle-order batter Jaker Ali who had stumps his castled with a ball that turned back in.
Like Mayank, Varun too was brought inside the powerplay. The mystery spinner bounced back after conceding 15 runs in his opening over by dismissing Towhid Hridoy (12).
At 64 for five in 10 overs, Bangladesh's innings was going nowhere and India were able to press on the advantage thereafter.
Mayank returned to bowl the 13th which went for 15 as Bangladesh batters used his extra pace to collect a six and four in the third man region. He ended his quota by bowling the 19th over which included a couple of yorkers.
Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh (3/14) had played his part his in the powerplay by removing openers Litton Das and Parvez Hossain Emon before picking his third wicket to end Bangladesh's innings. Hardik Pandya opened the bowling alongside Arshdeep.
A sell out crowd was in attendance as international cricket returned to Gwalior after 14 years. The stadium built in the outskirts of the city made its international debut.
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Skipper Rahane urges KKR to embrace tough days, play with freedom
Ahmedabad (PTI): Winless after six matches, time is running out for Kolkata Knight Riders playoff hopes but their embattled skipper Ajinkya Rahane has urged the side to "embrace tough phases, play with freedom, and focus on one game at a time".
Loss has been one constant for the three-time former champions this season as they endured a five-wicket loss against Gujarat Titans to slump to their fifth defeat from six matches with their solitary point coming courtesy a rain washout against Punjab Kings at Eden Gardens.
“It’s about accepting and embracing these tough days. Every day is a new day... trying to do better, playing with freedom, and backing each other," Rahane was at his philosophical best at the post-match media interaction here on Friday.
A minimum of seven wins is needed from a 10-team league to keep a team's playoff aspirations alive.
With eight matches to go and one point in their kitty, the task will be an improbable one for KKR from here on.
'Nothing to lose'
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Rahane, however, said they have nothing to lose and it's all about playing with freedom.
“We’re thinking one game at a time. It’s tough when you lose games, but everyone is trying their best. No one wants to lose any match -- we all want to win -- but that’s what sport is all about... keep your heads up. For us, it’s about going out there, being positive, and playing with freedom. We’ve got nothing to lose.
“Let me tell you one thing: everyone is working really hard. For us, it’s all about playing for our fans and the people of Kolkata, and we’re trying to do our best.
"After each and every game, there’s discussion about how we can improve. Obviously, when you lose, you tend to think about combinations and the areas we can get better at, so the discussion is always on."
Rahane won a fourth toss from six matches this season, but his decision to bat first once again raised eyebrows. Even his counterpart Shubman Gill said at the toss he would have preferred to bowl, keeping the dew in mind.
The call backfired as KKR slipped to 32 for 3 in four overs before their Rs 25.20-crore acquisition Cameron Green bailed them out with his best innings for the franchise so far, a 79 off 55 balls.
“It’s never easy when things are not going your way, and the courage he showed was fantastic. All credit to him," Rahane said.
“Yes, as a batting team we were thinking about 200 on this wicket. It would have been challenging, but let’s not take anything away from his innings.
“Attacking Rashid Khan and their fast bowlers, he was fantastic tonight for us.”
'Proud of bowlers'
The KKR skipper also admitted in the media interaction that there was a "bit of dew" but he hailed their inexperienced bowlers for taking the match till the final over.
From being 95/1 in nine overs in their chase of 181, GT were made to sweat with Jos Buttler, Washington Sunder, Glenn Phillilps and a well-set Gill falling against the run of play.
Rahul Tewatia and Shahrukh Khan eventually sealed the nervy chase with two balls to spare.
“Special mention to our bowling unit. It’s such an inexperienced attack with just two seniors in Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy, but the kind of improvement they’ve shown, especially in the last three games, has been fantastic," said Rahane.
“Kartik Tyagi, Vaibhav Arora, and Anukul Roy have also been fantastic, bowling tough overs in the powerplay and picking up wickets.
“Our support staff is doing a great job of keeping the environment really good. It’s all about accepting, but we will keep trying our best.”
