Fifties from Deepak Hooda and KL Rahul revive LSG from 27 for 3, before their bowlers led by Avesh Khan suffocated Sunrisers in the chase.
Lucknow Super Giants held off Sunrisers Hyderabad by 12 runs to make it successive wins for the defending side in a night match in Mumbai after six unsuccessful attempts.
Washington bosses the Powerplay
Sunrisers leaked 0 for 58 in the Powerplay to Rajasthan Royals in their first game in Pune. They used five overs of pace, and brought on Washington Sundar only in the fifth over, in which the off-spinner was taken for 18. It was to get worse for Washington; he conceded 47 in three overs as Sanju Samson punished him later whenever he erred a bit in length.
On Monday night, Kane Williamson brought on Washington in the second over itself, and gave him three on the trot in the Powerplay. Washington returned figures of 3-0-11-2; it helped that he had to bowl to two left-handers in Quinton de Kock and Evin Lewis, both of whom he dismissed in the space of four deliveries.
LSG managed just 32 for 3 during the field restrictions. However, the threat the right-handers still posed was evident in Washington’s last over, the 17th, in which KL Rahul and Ayush Badoni slogged and swept him for 17 runs.
Hooda and Rahul revive LSG
Deepak Hooda scored 55 off 41 in LSG’s debut game against Gujarat Titans. On a bigger outfield at the DY Patil Stadium, he revived his side again with 51 off 33 from a position of 48 for 3 after nine overs, in a partnership of 87 in 10.2 overs with his skipper KL Rahul.
The counter began in the 10th over, bowled by Umran Malik. The Jammu & Kashmir pacer had averaged 145kph in his first over for just three runs. When he switched ends, the LSG duo tweaked their approach too. Instead of trying to hit straighter and get pegged back by the express pace, they started using Umran’s speed to go squarer. When he went shorter, they ramped him fine. Williamson realised that and moved third man close to the sightscreen, but Hooda’s ramp was parried over by the fielder.
The square boundary at DY Patil is sizeable, but Hooda was timing it so well off Umran that he sent it a few rows back. He set up base just outside off-stump in an open stance, just like Hardik Pandya often uses. Umran tried to cramp him by angling it in but Hooda sprang into a narrower base, let the ball arrive and sent it soaring over deep backward square-leg. Thirty-six came off Umran’s latter two overs.
Tripathi keeps Sunrisers afloat
With deft touches behind the wicket and his collection of pulls and sweeps, Rahul Tripathi kept the chase going with 44 off 30.
Williamson chose the wrong delivery – a slower one – from Avesh Khan to scoop and could not clear short fine leg. Without the guiding hand of Williamson, Sunrisers were prone to not even getting close in such pursuits.
But Tripathi was threatening to run away with it when Krunal Pandya, who usually fires it in, floated one up at 80kph; Tripathi couldn’t get any distance on the slog-sweep and picked out deep midwicket.
Avesh, Tye close it out for LSG
Andrew Tye and Avesh combined to give only 25 in three overs, leaving Washington and Romario Shephered an improbable 16 to get off what proved to be an excellent last over from Jason Holder. Avesh got rid of Nicholas Pooran and Abdul Samad off successive deliveries in the 18th, finishing with 4-0-24-4.
News Sources – Indian Express-News
