Hiccups that never let SRH play as defending champions

slips and a short leg for Yuvraj in the 14th over), and kept a calm head when SRH wickets were tumbling to see off the game in style.

Despite the paltry revised target of 48 in six overs, his 32 not out off 19 balls was extremely crucial as it bailed his side out of trouble they had put themselves in.

As Sunrisers Hyderabad’s bowling coach Muttiah Muraitharan pointed out in the media conference, Kolkata Knight Riders were extremely lucky the rain didn’t go on for 20 minutes. SRH had a better standing in the group stage and would have gone through to Qualifier 2 had there been no play.

And, the target of 129 might not look great, but teams have successfully defended even 138 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium this season.

That KKR had to chase down a reduced target may have been a blessing in disguise as they might have found it difficult if they had to play all 20 overs. his new ball bowlers an extended spell in search of the wickets. It paid off when Umesh Yadav got Dhawan in the fifth over. SRH had started cautiously in the hope that they would consolidate after settling down. But they didn’t get quick runs in the powerplay and also lost the wicket. It put them on the backfoot straightaway.

On a difficult wicket, David Warner and Kane Williamson did well to add 50 runs for the second wicket. But they failed to consolidate on their starts as they fell in the space of three deliveries. First, Williamson was caught at cover off Nathan Coulter-Nile. It was a situation tailor made for a Warner special, where he singlehandedly takes the game to the opposition. But on Wednesday, leg-spinner Piyush Chawla cleaned him up without any addition to SRH’s score after William- son’s wicket. From 75 for one, SRH were reduced to 75 for three. It derailed the Sunrisers Hyderabad innings. Yuvraj Singh and Vijay Shankar tried to up the run rate but on an up-and-down wicket, it became a difficult task for the two new batsmen.

The Sunrisers Hyderabad’s success has been built on their bowling. Their pacers have taken wickets with the new ball and are known for their efficient death bowling. In Rashid Khan they have a wicket-taking spinner. But, with the opposition needing just 48 runs in six overs, and with 10 wickets in hand as per the Duckworth Lewis method, the bowlers were completely taken out of the equation. Kolkata Knight Riders lost three quick wickets, but had too many in the hut for them to be hurt by the early jolts.