KXIP face Pune Supergiant in a virtual quarterfinal
GETTING CLOSE Glenn Maxwell’s boys have to win their last match and hope that rain doesn’t play spoilsport
In what will be a virtual quarterfinal, Rising Pune Supergiant will take on Kings XI Punjab in their last group game here on Sunday. It is a must-win tie for Kings XI Punjab to stay in reckoning for playoffs. But there are chances that rain could play spoilsport. Rising Pune Supergiant, however, could qualify despite losing or in case of a washout.
It is a strange scenario indeed. Mumbai Indians have already qualified for the play-offs while Kolkata Knight Riders are almost assured of a spot since they have a better net run-rate (+0.729) among the teams vying for the other three spots.
Sunday’s match has become more crucial, a virtual quarterfinal, after Sunrisers Hyderabad won a playoffs berth after beating Gujarat Lions on Saturday.
For a major part of the season, RPS’ batting woes had been taken care of by the sensational opener Rahul Tripathi. His partner Ajinkya Rahane (248 runs at an average of 19.07) however has struggled. Of the 10 times the two have stepped out to take guard together, Rahane has fallen first on eight occasions.
The reason RPS find themselves on the cusp of qualification despite a horrid start to the tournament is because someone or the other has managed to step up in every game. The players, however, have lacked consistency. Be it Ben Stokes, Steven Smith or MS Dhoni, none of the top RPS batsmen have been able to play to their potential and consistently. Although Dhoni did manage to finish off a few games, he’s failed in delivering in crunch situations. Their bowling has been decent with Imran Tahir and of late Jaydev Unadkat, being impressive.
After four successive losses early in the tournament, Kings XI Punjab were in a spot of bother. But they have recovered well to keep their qualification hopes alive.
A major reason for their turnaround has been the consistent performances from Glenn Maxwell, Sandeep Sharma and Axar Patel, which along with a few blistering knocks from Shaun Marsh and Hashim Amla, have kept them in the hunt.
Sandeep Sharma, in particular, has been their go-to man over the last few games. He’s currently fifth on the list of top wicket-takers this season and has been extremely effective at the death.
Maxwell, too, has contributed well with the bat and has chipped in with crucial breakthroughs.
On Sunday too, a shared workload might come in handy for KXIP against RPS, who may still have to bank on individual brilliance to come through.