Roaring Yusuf Pathan proves he’s still a matchwinner for KKR
May 19, 2014 21:58:08 GMT -8
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Post by karan on May 19, 2014 21:58:08 GMT -8
Roaring Yusuf Pathan proves he’s still a matchwinner for Kolkata
by Tariq Engineer May 19, 2014 17:23 IST
For those who have wondered whether his run of poor form in the IPL affected Yusuf Pathan, the answer was writ large on his face last night. Harassed, harried and criticised for much of the last two years, Yusuf let it all out with a never-ending roar the moment Ryan ten Doeschate hit the winning runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Yusuf screamed and spread his arms and jumped and screamed and waved his arms and screamed and pumped his fist and thumped his chest and screamed. It was instinctive, raw emotion, the kind we almost never get to see in this sanitised age of media-managed images and social media strategies. And it told everyone how much it meant for him to see Kolkata Knight Riders through to the win.
He had come in with KKR struggling to score runs on a good batting wicket in what should have been a comfortable chase. Instead, stifling bowling from Sunrisers Hyderabad had turned it into a fight for survival. Having been promoted to No 4, Yusuf had time to settle in and a chance to play a match-winning hand.
“It is a great position to bat at since I get a chance to plan my innings and assess the situation better,” Yusuf told the official IPL website after the game.
KKR had choked twice already in this tournament, both times against Rajasthan Royals. There was also no guarantee Yusuf would come up trumps when he walked in. Of his seven previous innings, he had gone past 11 just twice. In four of those innings, he failed to score over five. His reputation as a match-winner was hiding in a dark corner of the KKR dressing room gathering dust.
Yusuf is rarely short of self-confidence though and team’s decision to promote him showed they backed him. He repaid their faith by winning the game. There was just the one false shot – a thick outside edge off Dale Steyn that flew harmlessly over point – as he mixed singles and twos with the big-hitting with which he has made his name.
There were only four boundaries in his unbeaten 39 from 28 balls but the two sixes in particular were struck at critical times. The first came when Yusuf had calmly made his way to 14 from 13 balls. An Amit Mishra full toss was deposited over deep midwicket to make sure KKR didn’t fall too far behind the asking rate. Then, with 30 needed from 18 balls, Yusuf sent a low full toss from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the tournament’s best bowler over deep midwicket as well. It instantly put the pressure on Bhuvneshwar and forced him to take risks instead of the batsmen.
How much Yusuf wanted the responsibility of guiding his team home was clear when he raced back for a second run and put in the full dive, all so he could continue facing Dale Steyn, who is only the world’s best fast bowler.
“I was just waiting for an opportunity where I could show that the match-winner in me was still alive, and tonight, it was on display.” Yusuf said. So were his emotions and the message could not have been clearer.
Read more at: www.firstpost.com/sports/roaring-yusuf-pathan-proves-hes-still-a-matchwinner-for-kkr-1532109.html?utm_source=ref_article
by Tariq Engineer May 19, 2014 17:23 IST
For those who have wondered whether his run of poor form in the IPL affected Yusuf Pathan, the answer was writ large on his face last night. Harassed, harried and criticised for much of the last two years, Yusuf let it all out with a never-ending roar the moment Ryan ten Doeschate hit the winning runs against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Yusuf screamed and spread his arms and jumped and screamed and waved his arms and screamed and pumped his fist and thumped his chest and screamed. It was instinctive, raw emotion, the kind we almost never get to see in this sanitised age of media-managed images and social media strategies. And it told everyone how much it meant for him to see Kolkata Knight Riders through to the win.
He had come in with KKR struggling to score runs on a good batting wicket in what should have been a comfortable chase. Instead, stifling bowling from Sunrisers Hyderabad had turned it into a fight for survival. Having been promoted to No 4, Yusuf had time to settle in and a chance to play a match-winning hand.
“It is a great position to bat at since I get a chance to plan my innings and assess the situation better,” Yusuf told the official IPL website after the game.
KKR had choked twice already in this tournament, both times against Rajasthan Royals. There was also no guarantee Yusuf would come up trumps when he walked in. Of his seven previous innings, he had gone past 11 just twice. In four of those innings, he failed to score over five. His reputation as a match-winner was hiding in a dark corner of the KKR dressing room gathering dust.
Yusuf is rarely short of self-confidence though and team’s decision to promote him showed they backed him. He repaid their faith by winning the game. There was just the one false shot – a thick outside edge off Dale Steyn that flew harmlessly over point – as he mixed singles and twos with the big-hitting with which he has made his name.
There were only four boundaries in his unbeaten 39 from 28 balls but the two sixes in particular were struck at critical times. The first came when Yusuf had calmly made his way to 14 from 13 balls. An Amit Mishra full toss was deposited over deep midwicket to make sure KKR didn’t fall too far behind the asking rate. Then, with 30 needed from 18 balls, Yusuf sent a low full toss from Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the tournament’s best bowler over deep midwicket as well. It instantly put the pressure on Bhuvneshwar and forced him to take risks instead of the batsmen.
How much Yusuf wanted the responsibility of guiding his team home was clear when he raced back for a second run and put in the full dive, all so he could continue facing Dale Steyn, who is only the world’s best fast bowler.
“I was just waiting for an opportunity where I could show that the match-winner in me was still alive, and tonight, it was on display.” Yusuf said. So were his emotions and the message could not have been clearer.
Read more at: www.firstpost.com/sports/roaring-yusuf-pathan-proves-hes-still-a-matchwinner-for-kkr-1532109.html?utm_source=ref_article