Kumar Sangakkara enjoyed a high on his last night out in DLF IPL4, his team Deccan Chargers chased down Pune Warriors modest 136 in a methodical, no-frills manner for a six-wicket win with four balls to spare, scoring 138-4 in 19.2 overs. The Sri Lankan, whose calmness stands out in batting and keeping, amidst the hustle and bustle of T20 cricket, avenged a six-wicket loss against the same side in a home game.
Two back-to-back away wins (DC pulled the plug on Mumbai Indians earlier) allows the captain the satisfaction of knowing that his players have collectively begun to take responsibility for performances justifying the talent in the squad. Before leaving to join the Lankan squad in England, Sangakkara left his mark on the game by walking after an attempt cut off Rahul Sharma resulted in a snick behind. Uttappa appealed, the umpire deliberated, the captain walked back, the bowler saluted.
Chasing 137 on a slow turner, the visitors negotiated the first six overs with cautious batting. Shikhar Dhawan was pushed up to regular opener slot, Sunny Sohal punished bowlers with audacious hitting against pace. DC had raced to 57 for no loss in six overs, inclusive of 10 from one over of Rahul Sharma’s leg-spin. Yuvraj stepped up to effect a turnaround, starting with a ball slanted wide on seeing Dhawan eagerness to step out. Uttappa whipped off the bails in style.
PW sensed a comeback when Sharma’s shout for leg-before was upheld after the ball sneaked through to strike Sohal on the backfoot. Sangakkara, leading DC for the last time before joining Sri Lanka in
England, was content with placements and taps into vacant areas for sharp singles. Duminy escaped a run-out at the non-striker end. Shrill whistles from Pune supporters mocked at the visitors tactics, 78-2 in 10 overs without fireworks expected by T20 fans eager for a dose of thrills and spills.
Earlier, brute force by Mitchell Marsh in the death overs helped Pune Warriors wipe off some of the batting embarrassment higher up the order. The Aussie stepped out against the slow bowlers for huge straight sixes, using his bat like a battering ram. He top-scored with 37 off 28 balls, an exception in a side where strokeplayers came and went through the revolving door. Ganguly fell to frustration, while Pandey, Uttappa carried the deathwish. Yuvraj stuck around for 17 balls then left without the blast from his blade.
The damage was done by slow bowlers. Medium-pacer Dan Christian underlined his utility value with Ganguly’s scalp (2-13). Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha (2-35) set off a chain reaction when opener Pandey chopped a ball onto his stumps. Amit Mishra’s double blow in his first over (2-26) almost knocked over the home team, disrupting plans the way he had done to Mumbai Indians two days ago. Duminy claimed a wicket each, reducing PW to 92-7 by the 15th over, then Marsh took charge.
Ravi Teja’s anticipation and reflexes created the first breakthrough for DC, holding on to a fierce Jesse Ryder slash at cover. Ganguly got a roaring welcome from PW fans when walked out to join Pandey. Dan Christian came into the attack replacing nippy Dale Steyn. Denied the pace to work the ball, the left-hander scratched around for four balls then scooped the ball to long-on. Pandey followed him, another self-inflicted blow as the opener created space to cut against left-arm spinner Ojha but could not clear off-stump.
Mishra, confident of troubling batsmen with his bag of tricks, bounded in to claim two critical wickets in his first over (1-1-0-2). Robin Uttappa tapped back a ball pitched on leg-stump back to the bowler. The leg-spinner bounced in joy as teammates joined in celebration. Next ball to Mithun Manhas was a googly, Mishra raised his arms in glee as the batsman fell for the bait, shaping for a late cut through slips and getting an inside edge onto the stumps. The home team lost half the side for 45 in eight overs.
Sangakkara stuck to spin even with Yuvraj flexing arms at the crease. Duminy twisted the knife in further, following Mishra’s double blow earlier, by preying on Ferguson’s anxiety to speed up scoring. PW’s resilience to last 20 overs appeared doubtful at this stage, runs had dried up and big hits were not coming off. Mitchell Marsh offered a glimmer of hope with a fierce pull high into midwicket off Christian. The medium-pacer struck a huge blow, forcing Yuvraj to swish at a delivery pitched short for a snick behind.
Scoreboard
Pune Warriors: J Ryder c Teja b Steyn 18 (14b, 1x4, 1x6); M Pandey b Ojha 23 (20b, 3x4, 1x6); S Ganguly c Ojha b Christian 0 (5b); R Uttappa c & b Mishra 4 (5b, 1x4); Y Singh c Sangakkara b Christian 23 (17b, 3x4, 1x6); M Manhas b Mishra 0 (1b); C Ferguson c & b Duminy 11 (14b, 1x4); M Marsh b Ojha 37 (28b, 1x4, 3x6); W Parnell run out 16 (6b, 1x6); B Kumar (no) 1 (1b);
Extras (lb1, w2) 3. Total (nine wkts, 20 overs) 136
Fall of wickets: 1-31, 2-35, 3-45, 4-45, 5-45, 6-73, 7-92, 8-127
Deccan Chargers bowling: J Duminy 2-0-19-1; D Steyn 4-0-23-1; I Sharma 3-0-19-0; D Christian 3-0-13-2; P Ojha 4-0-35-2; A Mishra 4-1-26-2
Deccan Chargers: S Dhawan st Uttappa b Yuvraj 28 (25b,4x4); S Sohal lbw b Sharma 34 (28b, 2x4, 2x6); K Sangakkara c Uttappa b Sharma 25 (21b, 2x4, 1x6); J Duminy b Parnell 23 (26b, 1x6); D Christian (not out) 14 (12b, 1x4); B Chipli (not out) 5 (4b); Total 138 for 4.
Fall of wickets: 1-67, 2-73, 3-108, 4-126
Pune Warriors bowling: B Kumar 2-0-10-0; W Parnell 3.2-0-27-1; R Sharma 4-0-25-2; M Marsh 3-0-30-0; Y Singh 4-0-27-1; M Manhas 2-0-19-0
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