Rashid threat looms over Chennai Rashid can tilt the scales for SRH
FINAL Dhoni’s team has psychological edge but after Rashid’s lastmatch heroics, CSK will be wary MUMBAI:
After nearly six weeks of rip-roaring action, it will be Captain Cool versus Captain Kane battling for supremacy in the IPL title clash at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super King will be aiming to cap a fairytale return to competition after the ignominy of a two-year suspension while Kane Williamsonled Sunrisers Hyderabad will be gunning for their second title, having overcome the setback of losing talismanic captain, David Warner, before the IPL began.
CSK came in with bruised ego and have battered opponents into submission in their ruthless march to the final, their seventh in nine editions. After a dream start, SRH have stuttered and have just about got in the position to challenge CSK for the crown.
RASHID FACTOR
Some of the biggest names in the game will line-up. However, all eyes will be on Afghanistan sensation Rashid Khan following Friday’s heroics in the playoff against Kolkata Knight Riders.
He will be the man CSK need to take care of if they want to lay their hands on the IPL trophy for the third time. In Friday’s knockout game, the Afghanistan legspinner scored 34 not out off 10 balls, took three wickets and two catches, and effected a run-out, single-handedly silencing the Eden Gardens crowd.
CSK have first-hand information of the destruction Rashid can cause. In their low-scoring game last Tuesday, he had threatened to derail CSK’s chase by prising out Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo while conceding just 11 runs in four overs. In the end, SRH’s total of 139 was not enough. Williamson had erred in not sending Rashid to bat.
After the KKR game, CSK can be sure they will be given the extra headache of containing Rashid the power-hitter as well.
Hyderabad have a strong toporder where Williamson and Shikhar Dhawan have provided early momentum in many matches. A faltering middle-order has been their Achilles’ heel.
A five-day gap would have helped Dhoni and Co to recharge their batteries. Mumbai has proved to be lucky for CSK, to win from losing positions: in the IPL opener versus Mumbai Indians and then in the playoff game.
Their in-form batting line-up revolves around Ambati Rayudu, Dhoni and Suresh Raina. With South Africa pacer Lungi Ngidi producing sharp bursts with the new ball, CSK’s bowling is also looking far more potent than at the start of the tournament. SRH have taken the tougher road to the final. Having made the West to East trip and back, overcoming fatigue will be a factor.
In T20, it’s all about the ability to think on your feet. All prematch planning can come a cropper as one bad delivery can cause panic. The two sides have to only look at their last contest when Dhawan’s first-ball duck sent their plans haywire. SRH never recovered and CSK squeezed home.
Criticised as Dad’s Army, CSK have proved experience is priceless in T20. Faf du Plessis showed it again in the first playoff match by playing a match-winning hand. CSK will also believe they have the psychological edge heading into the final, having won all three encounters between the two this season.
But Rashid is making it a habit of throwing pre-match predictions out of the window. Total matches Raina’s experience, which helps him to switch roles between an aggressor and anchor innings’ at times, is a threat that SRH will be wary of and will bank on Kaul to send him back on the cheap. Besides Rashid, Kaul is the joint-highest wicket-taker for SRH and has 21
wickets to his name. 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.
TCM