Rashid can tilt the scales for SRH
I doubt if Rashid Khan will ever have a match like this again. You could not even call it a dream performance for dreams have a touch of reality in it.
Here’s what he did in Qualifier 2. He got 34 runs off 10 balls batting at No 8 in what was a lowscoring game and then he gets 3 wickets for 19 runs in his four overs. No, it does not end there. He then takes two crucial catches in the deep, and there is more, he also gets a run out. That’s what I mean about it being too unreal.
Not too many people know that Rashid actually started off as a batsman when he started playing cricket, so that explains his odd impact with the bat. But what makes him a real champion is his bowling. In the two playoffs he has figures of 4 overs for 11 runs and 2 wickets and then that 4 overs for 19 runs and 3 wickets at the Eden Gardens. Incredible!
His deception with his leg spin and googly is so good that he also has Indian, not just foreign, batsmen searching for the ball. Shubman Gill played him the best in the game on Friday, by the way. When as a batsman you see the back of the hand facing you, it’s a clue that you are about to get a googly but with Rashid this theory can lead you astray.
He lets you see the back of the hand at the point of release but his fingers roll over the ball in such a way that you eventually get a leg spinner. So, he is one bowler you can’t just watch the way the wrist behaves to know what’s coming. You have to look at the way the ball is spinning in the air when it’s coming to you. This is easier said than done.
About the final, well, CSK have compromised on agility in the field for experience and this has stood them in good stead in tight games when the pressure is really on. Like we saw with Faf du Plessis in the first playoff, his international temperament was put to good use in winning that game that was running away from CSK.
The odd misfield or dropped catch could hurt them, so also their death bowling. They are still to find a dependable bowler to do this job well.
As for SRH, it’s their batting. It’s amazing that with this batting unit and its form, SRH have reached this far. I pick CSK as favourites to win because of better temperament, but SRH have Rashid Khan.