Sunit Jangir

Sunit Jangir

101 Articles

As a Senior Editor at Sacnilk, Sunit Jangir leads our coverage on Indian cinema, box office analytics, and global entertainment trends. Passionate about Cricket, Sunit Jangir is an avid sports lover. He finds inspiration in other people's life stories and try to absorb them. Though introvert by nature, he doesn't feel shy when the topic is cinema and sports, particularly cricket.

Articles Written By Sunit Jangir

Our strategy wasn't wrong there - Ajinkya Rahane
2938 days ago
IPL

Our strategy wasn't wrong there - Ajinkya Rahane

Rajasthan Royals' journey in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 had been ended after they lost to Kolkata Knight Riders in an eliminator round by 25 runs at packed Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Wednesday (May 23). However, Rajasthan Royal had their chance to win this game especially after they were in the dominating position on 109 for 1 after 14 overs in reply of 170 runs.## Rajasthan Royals hadn't put their foot wrong till the 14 over of their innings. But it was a shame that they could not cross the line despite playing their one of the best games in this IPL.## "Disappointed, especially given how we started, taking 4-5 wickets early. That partnership (Karthik and Gill) and the dropped catch of Russell hurt us. When you get the start like that, you generally look to win the game. I think KKR bowled really well. They know the conditions really well. It was gettable. They were 10-12 runs short. It's important to finish the games and we didn't have partnerships towards the end" ## "When I and Sanju were batting, we were looking to play positively. I told him during the second time that I will go after the bowlers and that you bat through. But unfortunately, he got out. I think overall we played good cricket. Our bowling unit fantastic this season. Need to improve our batting and fielding," said Rahane in the presentation ceremony.## Rajasthan Royals were provided with a solid start by skipper Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Tripathi. The Duo added 47-runs for the first wicket before Sanju Samson took charge on KKR along with Rahane. But once the second timeout had done, RR start losing their grip over the match. They lost Rahane and Samson in quick succession. With 61 runs required off 35 balls, RR needed someone to play a quick inning. Krishanppa Gowtham could have been that man who had a strike rate of 196.87 in this season. But Heinrich Klaasen walked out instead. The decision backfired RR as Klaasen could score run a ball 18.## "I think if you see, Klaasen is a really good batsman and he did really well in the last game. It is difficult when you get those runs...you try and think what if you had sent Gowtham at that number. We sent Klaasen...yes he tired his best but again KKR bowlers, especially the spinners, were really good," said Rahane in post-match conference.## "I think with our batting line-up, we wanted to go deep. When I and Sanju were batting, we wanted to go deep and if Klaasen can come when they have seven or eight overs left, I think that was a perfect opportunity for him. Unfortunately, we didn't cross the line but I don't think our strategy was wrong there. I think KG's batting position he batted well at number 6 or 7," Rahane offered.## On the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders now will play against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the second qualifier on Friday, May 25 at the same venue. Both teams will fight to play against Chennai Super Kings in final on May 27 at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

A night of du Plessis special
2939 days ago
IPL

A night of du Plessis special

It was not easy for Faf du Plessis to came out to bat and play a match-winning knock after having played only five games out of 14 in this season of Indian Premier League. But it was such his class which single-handedly took Chennai Super Kings through to their 7th IPL final, at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Tuesday (May 22).## Du Plessis was up against arguably the best bowling attack of this IPL and that made his knock even more special. He came out as an opener and show his partners on the other end kept losing their wickets at regular space. He found a partner in Shardul Thakur who played a short bat valuable innings along with him.## With 43 required in 18 balls, first, du Plessis with 20 runs to Brathwaite in 18th over and after that Thakur with 17 runs to Siddarth Kaul seal the deal for CSK. With six required in last over, du Plessis hit a six on the first ball and finished the game with five balls to spare. Du Plessis was also awarded Man Of The Match for his heroic knock of 67* off 42 balls.## "It's nice to make a contribution tonight. Haven't played much. Last night when I was preparing, I reflected on the games I have played here in Mumbai. It is a stadium I have enjoyed playing. Took confidence from that. I just got in the change room now and said, how did we win that game. It felt just a little out of reach. It was great that guys came in and hit a few boundaries in the end. Everything went our way towards the end on a wicket which wasn't easy to bat on"## "Rashid Khan was a handful on that wicket. He was really really tough to play on that wicket and he bowls quickly. It is hard to take him on. Our plan got through him and see which bowler to take down on the night. Towards the end, I was just trying to place a few," said du Plessis while receiving Man of the match.## Shardul Thakur, who had a forgettable night with the ball as conceded 50 runs in his 4 overs but his handful cameo of 15* off 5 balls overshadowed his bowling figure.## "I thought it was good and it was important for me to give some runs and so that Faf could finish it. He(Faf) was set. I kept saying to the coaches that I can bat. Last year I got out twice while playing for Pune when I had an opportunity. This time I ensured I finished the game. MS said 'Pic the balls and react'. Faf and I discussed what to do. He was saying me to take the single, but it worked the other way around. We kept getting the boundaries. That's what people want. In the end, they got some. The belief was always there. If you have to win, you need to have the belief," said Thakur.## With this win, CSK becomes the first team to reach into the final but they will have to wait who will be their opponent in final.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

Du Plessis heroic take CSK through final of the IPL 2018
2940 days ago
IPL

Du Plessis heroic take CSK through final of the IPL 2018

Chennai Super Kings becomes the first team to reach into the final of the VIVO IPL 2018 after Faf du Plessis stunning 67* off 42 balls helped his team to beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 2 wickets in the first qualifier at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Tuesday (May 22).## Sunrisers Hyderabad posts 139 on the board after putting to bat first. Thanks to Carlos Brathwaite's late blitz of 43* off 29 balls. In reply, CSK were struggling on 62 for 6 before du Plessis pulled out a stunning show and won it almost single handily for his team.## SRH off to a miserable start## After putting to bat first, Sunrisers lost Shikhar Dhawan on the very first ball of the innings. Deepak Chahar's inswinging got Dhawan out. However, Kane Williamson hit three back to back fours in first over and tried to give momentum to SRH innings. When they were looking to build a partnership Lungi Nagidi dismissed Goswami before Shardul Thakur trapped big fish in back to back overs. Williamson scored 24 off 15. After that, they kept losing wickets in regular space and at one stage they reduced to 88 for 6 after 15 overs.## Brathwaite's late assault kept SRH in the hunt## After losing 6 wickets on 88, Carlos Brathwaite took responsibility on his own shoulders and hammered 43 off 29 balls including one four and 4 sixes. He put on a 51-run stand off 30 balls with Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He collected 20 runs from the last over Thakur with two sixes and a four.## CSK off to similar start to SRH## In reply to 140, CSK got off to very much similar start as SRH had started. First Bhuvneshwar got Shane Watson in 5th ball of the innings. After that Suresh Raina hit three fours to Sandeep Sharma before Siddarth Kaul bowled Raina and Ambati Rayudu out on back to back balls. Raina scored 22 while Rayudu could not open his account. After that, it was Rashid Khan who had almost won the game for SRH by picking MS Dhoni in 8th over.## Rashid Khan kept things tight further. In this process, he got another wicket this time he trapped Bravo in slip region. At one stage they reduced to 62 for 6 after 12.3 overs.## Du Plessis- finish it off in style## After losing 6 wickets, Plessis added 30 runs off 15 balls with Chahar for the 7 wickets. But he changed the game in 18th over where he scored 20 runs off Brathwaite with the help of 3 fours and a six. In that over he reached his first fifty of this IPL off just 37 balls. With 23 runs needed in two overs, Shardul Thakur joined the party with Plessis and hammered valuable 17 runs off Siddarth Kaul in 19th over. Only 6 required off the last over, Plessis hit the first ball for a six and helped CSK to reach their record 7th IPL final. Du Plessis hit 5 fours and 4 sixes in his match-winning knock and awarded Man Of The Match## Spinners day out## In a low scoring thriller, Ravindra Jadeja and Rashid Khan were the star performer with the balls. First Jadeja who conceded only 13 runs in his 4 overs and picked Manish Pandey while Rashid Khan finished his spell with the even more impressive figures of 4-0-11-2. Lungi Nagidi also bowled well and gave away only 20 runs in 4 overs and picked a wicket too.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

We haven't applied ourselves in terms of getting results - Ashwin
2941 days ago
IPL

We haven't applied ourselves in terms of getting results - Ashwin

Kings XI Punjab has been knocked out from the IPL in 2018 after they lost to Chennai Super Kings by 5 wickets. It was not only a must-win game for KXIP but also they needed to win it by 53 plus runs to qualify for the playoffs. However, it became even more difficult after they restricted to below par score of 153 after putting to bat first.## Chennai Super Kings chased down the target in 19.1 over after Suresh Raina's match-winning knock of 61* off 48 balls.## It was hard to understand that KXIP could not qualify for the playoffs as they were on top after the first half of the season where they won 5 out of 7 matches they played. But it was their middle order failure which let them down badly. Skipper Ravichandran Ashwin also thinks that their middle order did not play well at all which was expected.## "Rahul and Gayle were making most of the runs but the middle order did not click at all which was expected, which hurt us in the latter half of the tournament. Ankit did very well and of course, KL was amazing. We have Purple Cap holder in Tye as well. So loads of positive but we have not applied ourselves. We have not commanded any respect at all in terms of getting a result on our own terms," said Ashwin in the post-match presentation.## However, Ashwin thinks that their loss against Royal Challengers Bangalore cost them a lot where they lost by 10-wickets.## "The game against RCB cost a lot. Not only in terms of the run-rate but especially in terms of moral. We were not really there in terms of performance on such a day. But CSK were better today. A good team culture will help us win tournaments in future. So would like to build that culture slowly in this new look franchise and we will look to do much better next time,".## KXIP's loss takes Rajasthan Royals through playoffs where they were waiting for this match to be in their favour. Now they will join SRH, CSK and KKR in playoffs.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

DD Knock MI Out From The IPL 2018
2942 days ago
IPL

DD Knock MI Out From The IPL 2018

Mumbai Indians have been knocked out from the IPL 2018 after they lost to Delhi Daredevils by 11 runs at Firoz Shah Kotla stadium, Delhi on Sunday (May 20). Delhi Daredevils, led by Amith Mishra's 3 for 19 restricted Mumbai Indians on 163 after Rishabh Pant's sixth fifty of this season helped DD to post a big total of 174.## How DD reached to 174## After winning the toss, DD had opted to bat first. Opener Prithvi Shaw and Glenn Maxwell gave a decent start by adding 30-runs for the first wicket in 3 overs before Shaw run out himself with a lazy stuff. Maxwell also after scoring 22 off 18 balls fell in next over as Jasprit Bumrah bowled him out. After that Rishabh Pant (Orange Cap holder) takes on Mumbai Indians' bowlers and hit them all around the park. In this process, he reached to his sixth fifty of this season off just 31 balls. But before that, he put on a 37-run stand with skipper Shreyas Iyer for the third wicket.## After losing 3 wickets on 75 after 9 overs, Vijay Shankar joined the party with Pant and added 64 runs off 47 balls for the fourth wicket. Pant takes on Hardik Pandya after reaching to his half-century and hit 2 sixes and a four in 16th over of the innings. However, after scoring 64, Krunal Pandya got him out at long on where Pollard was ready to catch it. After wicket of Pant, Vijay Shanker took responsibility on his own shoulders and helped DD to reach a good score of 174 after 20 overs. He hit Ben Cutting for a six and a four in last over and remained unbeaten on 43 off 30 balls including 3 fours and 2 sixes while Abhishek Sharma made 15* off 10 balls with a six.## How MI respond to it?## In reply of 175, Mumbai Indians off to a flier despite losing Suryakumar Yadav in first over. Evin Lewis takes on Harshal Patel in fourth over by hitting 2 fours and a six. He followed this momentum in next over where he hit 2 sixes and a four to Maxwell. Mumbai Indians scored 57 runs in first six overs. Both Lewis and Ishan Kishan added 45 for the second wicket in which Kishan's contribution was only 5 runs.## Middle order collapsed hurt MI badly## Some exceptional bowling from Amit Mishra and Young Sandeep Lamichhane was the reason behind MI's 11 runs defeat. First Amit Mishra got Ishan Kishan out on 57. Before Mumbai Indians could recover from Ishan's wicket, Mishra gave them another big blow by dismissing Lewis on 74. Lewis scored 48 off 31 balls including 3 fours and 4 sixes. After that, it was Lamichhane who put Mumbai completely on the back foot by dismissing Pollard and Krunal in same over. In Pollard's wicket, it was a combination of excellent fielding from Maxwell and Boult.## However, after losing 5 wickets on 78, Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya tried to bring MI back into the game by adding 43 runs off 25 balls for the sixth wicket before Harshal Patel deceived Rohit on a slower ball and caught out at long on. Hardik followed Rohit in next over as Mishra trapped him on the flighted ball. He scored 27 off 17 balls.## Cutting's cameo went in vain## Ben Cutting kept MI in the hunt till the last over with a blitzing knock of 37 off 20 balls. He was dropped on 3 by Patel and hit a six on next ball. With 38 needed off 18 balls, he takes on Liam Plunket in 18th over and hit 2 fours and a and collect 15 runs from that over. In 19th over Trent Boult gave away only 5 runs and left the equation with 18 off 6 balls. Cutting start the last over with a six to deep square leg but fell out on next ball to Patel. With the wicket of Cutting, MI's hopes were also done and dusted. Bumrah was the last man to be dismissed as DD won by 11 runs.## Leg spinners' day out## Amit Mishra and Sandeep Lamichhane were the star bowlers for the DD who spun MI in their leg spin bowling. Mishra dismissed Ishan Kishan, Evin Lewis and Hardik Pandya in his four overs and conceded only 19 runs while Lamichhane finished his spell with 4-0-36-3. He dismissed Suryakumar Yadav, Pollard and Krunal. Amit Mishra also awarded Man Of The Match for his match-winning spell.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

We need to be smarter in composing our team-Virat Kohli
2942 days ago
IPL

We need to be smarter in composing our team-Virat Kohli

Royal Challengers Bangalore became the only second team after Delhi Daredevils to be out from the IPL 2018. They lost to Rajasthan Royals in all important match by 30 runs on May 19. However, Virat Kohli, RCB skipper thinks that their middle did not show enough intent and that resulted in they failed to make it to the playoffs.## Keep in mind, Royal Challengers Bangalore failed to chase down 165 against Rajasthan Royals. Only AB de Villiers showed the required batting nous to handle the tricky conditions on view as the visitors were bowled out for 134.## "Yeah, it was a strange one. We were in a great position. 75 for 1 and the way we bundled out was not ideal. Someone like AB who can hit fours and sixes was knocking around so the others did not support him and apply themselves properly. We needed more smart decision making there. These things should be repeated by 5-6 guys in a row," said Kohli in post-match presentation.## "We wanted to strengthen the middle order which has not happened. It has not been our strength and we need to do that going into the next few seasons. We need to be smarter in composing our team. The responsibility cannot be taken up by only AB de Villiers all the time. He certainly scored runs, but others need to contribute to him and did not show enough composure," he added## However, Virat Kohli thinks that their bowlers did the pretty good job for them and will be great assets going into the next season.## "There were some new players who did well. Umesh bowled extremely well with the new ball, Chahal was great, Siraj and Moeen contributed too, so plenty of positives to take into the next season. However, after cruising at 75 for 1, it was disappointed that we could to finish it off well. I would like to wish all the other teams the best of luck for the remainder of the competition," He said.## Virat Kohli is very much right about RCB's middle order concern as the third highest run-getter is Mandeep Singh with 252 runs after their two best batsmen Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers scored 530 and 480 respectively.## On the other hand, despite climbing fourth in the points table, RR's fate would be decided based on matches played by Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab on Sunday, May 20.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

Krishna, Lynn star as KKR reaches to the playoffs
2942 days ago
IPL

Krishna, Lynn star as KKR reaches to the playoffs

Kolkata Knight Riders became the third team after Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings to reach into the playoffs after they beat table toppers Sunrisers Hyderabad by five wickets at Rajiv Gandhi Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad on Saturday (May 19). They have now 16 points in 14 matches and likely to remain on 3rd spot. On the other hand, SRH will finish on the top spot despite losing their last three games.## The Dhawan-Goswami show## SRH, after winning the toss had opted to bat first. Alex Hales had dropped from this match and therefore Shreevats Goswami came out to open with Shikhar Dhawan. Dhawan (50) and Goswami (35) put KKR under pressure with a 79-run opening stand for the first wicket. KKR's bowling continued to struggle up front as Goswami took 20 runs off Andre Russell in the third over of the innings and gave SRH innings momentum.## The Duo also going with the healthy run rate before Kuldeep Yadav provided a much-needed breakthrough to KKR by dismissing Goswami caught at long on.## Williamson played a blitz before Narine and Krishna hit them back## After wicket of Goswami, inform Kane Williamson came to the crease and started his innings with a first ball boundary to Yadav. He showcases his big hitting ability by hitting a six to Yadav and 2 sixes to Javon Searles before caught out at the deep cover boundary. He made 36 off 17 balls.## After being 128 for 2 in 13 overs, SRH lost their way a bit and could manage only 80 runs in last 10 over. Courtesy some brilliant bowling by Prasidh Krishna and Sunil Narine. It was Krishna who dismissed well set Dhawan on 50 and brought back KKR into the game. He ended his spell by picking 3-wickets in last over and gave away just four runs. In his 4 overs, he conceded only 30 runs and picked four wickets. Sunil Narine also bowled well and ended with 1 for 23 in 4 overs. SRH, after a solid start, restricted to 172 for 9 after 20 overs.## KKR off to flier## Chasing 180, opener Sunil Narine and Chris Lynn gave KKR a flying start by adding 52-runs off 22 balls for the first wicket. Narine played a cameo of 29 off 10 balls including 4 fours and 2 sixes before he got out to Shakib Al Hasan. KKR scored 66 runs in the powerplay.## In this process, Chris Lynn reached to his half-century off 36 balls. He added 66-run with Robin Uthappa for the second wicket before he got out to Siddarth Kaul. He scored 55 off 43 balls including 4 fours and 3 sixes and awarded Man Of The Match.## Karthik take KKR through home## After wicket of Lynn, Uthappa carried the innings forward and scored 45 off 34 balls with the help of 3 fours and 2 sixes. He got out on 149 after that Dinesh Karthik comfortably took his team home with unbeaten 26 off 22 balls. KKR had won the match with two balls to spare.## Siddarth Kaul was the pickup bowler for SRH. He finished his spell with 4-0-26-2. ## For more and latest news about IPL 2018, stay tuned to us. ## Thanks for Reading!

RR scripts RCB's exit with a clinical win
2943 days ago
IPL

RR scripts RCB's exit with a clinical win

Royal Challengers Bangalore have been out from the race of playoffs after the disappointing show with the bat. And resulted in they lost the match by 30-runs to Rajasthan Royals at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur on Saturday (May 19).## Rajasthan Royals after winning the toss had opted to bat first. They finished on 164 after Rahul Tripathi played a crucial inning of 80* off 58 balls. In the replay, at one stage RCB were 76 for 1 but restricted 30 runs short from the target courtesy some brilliant bowling from Shreyas Gopal.## Rahul Tripathi- Better late than never## In this match, RR was playing without their inform players Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes, who back to their national duty. So it was a big task in front of them. Rahul Tripathi who has not been in good form in this IPL came in the form at the right time. He added 99 runs with Ajinkya Rahane for the second wicket and gave RR a perfect platform of the big score. However, Umesh Yadav dismissed Rahane and Sanju Samson in back to back deliveries.## After losing Rahane and Samson, Tripathi needed a partner to play along with him. He found a right man in Heinrich Klaasen. Both put on a 48-run stand for the fourth wicket off just 34 balls. Klaasen scored 32 off 21 balls. In last over of the innings, RR collected 15 runs and finished on a good total of 164. Tripathi remained unbeaten on 80 off 58 balls including 5 fours and 3 sixes.## How good was Umesh Yadav## Umesh Yadav was the star bowler for RCB. When other bowlers were struggling he was the one who provided a breakthrough to RCB. He got his first wicket of Jofra Archer in his first over. After that when RR looking to score big he has introduced again in 13th over and dismissed Rahane and Samson on successive balls and brought back RCB into the game. He finished his spell with impressive figures of 4-1-25-3.## De Villiers, Patel came off to a flier## Chasing 165, RCB lost early wicket of skipper Virat Kohli who could score only 4 off 9 balls before Karishanppa Gowtham bowled him out. After that inform, AB de Villiers and Parthiv Patel built a partnership and added 55 off 34 balls. Patel was the aggressor in this partnership and scored quickly. He hit two sixes to Archer before he takes on Unadkat for 2 fours. While de Villiers also scored quickly. He hammered 3 fours to Archer in fourth over and followed up with 2 more to Ish Sodhi.## Gopal break RCB's hearts## When RCB was looking comfortable on 75 for 1, then Shreyas Gopal changed the game in space of 4 balls by dismissing Patel and Moeen Ali. He then dismissed Mandeep Singh in his next over and put RCB on the back foot. In this process, de Villiers reached to his 6th fifty of this season off just 31 balls but wickets were continuing falling at the other end as Ish Sodhi got dangerous Colin de Grandhomme and left RCB in awful condition. In this process, de Villiers lose his concentration and misread a googly from Gopal and got stumped out by Goswami. This wicket proved to be game-changing wicket as RCB could only manage to get 134 in 19.2 overs.## Shreyas Gopal was the pickup bowler. He finished his spell with match-winning figures of 4-0-16-4 and awarded Man Of The Match## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for reading.

Harshal Patel star in DD's easy win
2943 days ago
IPL

Harshal Patel star in DD's easy win

Bottom-placed Delhi Daredevils beat Chennai Super Kings by 34-runs at the Firoz Shah Kotla, Delhi on Friday (May 18). However, this win did not affect the points table as DD had already been out of this competition.## Batting first, Delhi Daredevils at one stage was looking to restrict to below 150, before a massive last over gave them a big total courtesy of some big hitting from Harshal Patel and Vijay Shankar. Chasing 163, only Ambati Rayudu managed to get some runs. None of the other batsmen could manage to score big and resulted in they restricted 34 runs short from the target.## How pitch played, was it difficult for the batsmen?## It was definitely not a pitch where you go and play your shots straightway. Deepak Chahar and Trent Boult found a swing on it while Lungi Nagidi and Avesh Khan bowled at a decent pace. Spinners also found a turn on this pitch. On the other hand, while other batsmen found difficult to score runs, Harshal Patel, Rishabh Pant and Ambati Rayudu played at a decent pace.## DD off to a good start before Nagidi hit them back## Delhi Daredevils despite losing Prithvi Shaw early, off to a good start. However, Shaw looked scratchy against the moving deliveries while Shreyas Iyer too couldn't find much rhythm in his batting. They manage to get only 39 runs in the powerplay. But Rishabh Pant, who has been in outstanding form throughout this IPL, played at a decent pace.## DD was looking in a comfortable position at 78 for 1 before Lungi Nagidi came to the attack and dismissed both Pant and Iyer in same over. Glenn Maxwell also couldn't do much and went for a reverse sweep before Ravindra Jadeja bowled him out. Abhishek Sharma after playing blitzing innings in the previous match, couldn't repeat that performance and got out cheaply after scoring 2 off u4 balls. With the wicket of Sharma, Daredevils reduced to 97 for 5 after 14.4 overs.## Patel and Vijay Shankar came to rescue and made the difference## After reducing to 97 for 5, Daredevils needed someone to stood out for them in the middle and they found the right people for the job in Vijay Shankar and Harshal Patel. After 19 overs, Delhi Daredevils were 136 for 5 and looking to finish around 145 but Harshal Patel had some other Idea. He went after Bravo in last over and collect 26 runs from that over including 4 sixes and gave Delhi more than enough to defend. Patel remained unbeaten on 36 off 16 balls while Vijay Shankar scored 36* off 28 balls.## Rayudu shone again## In reply, Chennai Super Kings off to a good start. However, Shane Watson was bit scratchy but Ambati Rayudu continued his fine form and hit another half-century in this IPL. He took only 28 balls to reach that. Both Watson and Rayudu added 46 runs for the first wicket before Watson got out to Amit Mishra. He made only 14 off 23 balls. However, Rayudu also got out after getting his fifty to Harshal Patel. He made 50 off 29 balls with the help of 4 fours and as many sixes.## DD kept things tight to restricted them## When Rayudu got out, CSK were 70 for 2 after 10 overs. Daredevils bowled with right line and length and made difficult for them to score runs. Ravindra Jadeja played a cameo 27† off 18 balls but it had been too late till then as they fell short 34 runs from the target.## Daredevils bowling was well on top but Amit Mishra and Trent Boult were the stars with the bowl. They both finished with same figures of 4-0-20-2 each. Harshal Patel also grabbed a wicket and awarded Man Of The Match for his all-round display.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for reading.

RCB alive with a crucial win
2944 days ago
IPL

RCB alive with a crucial win

Skipper Kane Williamson's 81 off 42 balls and Manish Pandey's 62 off 38 balls went in vain as Royal Challengers Bangalore beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 14-runs in yet another run-feast contest at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore on Thursday(May 17). This game was supposed to be a battle between bat and ball but it turned around between RCB and SRH. With this win, RCB boosted their chances to qualify for the playoffs.## The AB de Villiers and Moeen Ali show## Chinnaswamy crowd were on their feet when AB de Villiers walkout to the park. After losing the wicket of Virat Kohli, de Villiers had a huge responsibility to take RCB to a safe total. He did not take too much time to kickstart his innings. He hit his first boundary to Shakib Al Hasan behind point before lofting one over extra cover. The innings kept getting better with AB settling into his groove, depositing the ball into gaps with ease.## It was such his class which makes him a different player. He shows his 360° skill in 13th over when he shuffle-across and sent the ball out of the stadium. He reached to his fifty off just 32 balls and looking unstoppable before Rashid Khan brought back for his final over. AB got out in trying to clear the fence and holed out to a well-judged catch by Shikhar Dhawan at deep squire leg boundary. AB scored 69 off 39 balls including 12 fours and a six. And also awarded Man Of The Match for his stunning knock.## On the other hand, Moeen Ali joined the party with AB and scored his maiden IPL fifty. He has batted various position so far but in this match, he was sent after the dismissal of skipper Virat Kohli. After playing a few balls carefully, he welcomed Basil Thampi with back to back sixes and followed with another one Rashid Khan over long off. In this process, he reached to his fifty off just 25 balls. He and AB de Villiers added 107-run for the third wicket. After scoring 65 off 35 balls including 2 fours and y sixes, he got out to Rashid Khan.## The Grandhomme finish## After the dismissal of AB and Ali, RCB needed someone to carry the momentum which was given by the duo. Colin De Grandhomme took that responsibility and hammered 40 off 17 balls including 4 sixes and a four. Sarfaraz Khan also joined the party and blasted 22* off 8 balls including 3 fours and a six. The duo put 34 off 13 balls and lifted RCB to a massive total of 218 for 6 after 20 overs.## SRH had to fire and they did## To chase down 219, SRH needed their openers to fire. And they did the same by putting 47-run stand for the first wicket before Dhawan hot caught and bowled by Yuzvendra Chahal. He scored 18 off 15 balls with the help of two sixes. Alex Hales and Williamson carried the momentum but AB de Villiers took a stunner to dismissed Alex Hales. He made 37 off 24 balls including 2 fours 3 sixes.## Williamson strikes again along with Pandey## After losing two wickets on 64, SRH skipper Williamson and Manish Pandey kept their team in the game till the last over. Williamson, who is leading run-getter for his team, again lead from the front and took his team almost through the line. On the other hand, Manish Pandey who hasn't been good form before this match, find his lost touch. He started slowly but once he set he took RCB to all around the park. He got his third fifty of this IPL off 30 balls while Williamson reached to his 8th fifty in this season off 28 balls.## The duo put on a 153-run stand for the third wicket. But it was not proved enough as they fell short by 14-runs. It was also Tim Southee and Mohammad Siraj, who executed their yorkers well in the end and made it difficult for them to score runs.## Rashid's magic spell and a night to forget for Thampi## In a game where didn't want to bowl, Rashid Khan, nipped out the wicket of Kohli, de Villiers and Moeen Ali in his magic spell. He conceded only 27 runs in his four-over spell. He took also a one-handed stunner to dismissed De Grandhomme. While Rashid was the most economical bowler, Basil Thampi had the worst night with the ball. He conceded 19, 18, 14, 19 in his four overs respectively. He replaced Bhuvneshawar Kumar in the side but misfired horribly to concede 70 runs off his 4 overs and became the most expensive bowler in the history of the IPL.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for the reading.

Bumrah keep MI alive despite Rahul's heroics
2945 days ago
IPL

Bumrah keep MI alive despite Rahul's heroics

Jasprit Bumrah again proved why he is one of the best death bowlers in the world as his 3 for 15 overshadowed KL Rahul's 94 off 60 balls and Andrew Tye's 4 for 16 to sealed a thrilling 3-run win against Kings XI Punjab to stay alive in this competition at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Wednesday (May 16). Mumbai Indians, after this win move up to number 4 in points table.## Tye ruined MI's flying start## It was Kings XI Punjab, who had won the toss and put Mumbai Indians to bat first. MI got off to flying start as Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan's early assault against Mohit Sharma and Ankit Rajpoot gave MI a solid start before Andrew Tye put them on to back foot. He was introduced in fourth over and dismissed Evin Lewis on the very first ball. After that he dismissed both Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan in back to back balls in his second over and reduced MI from 37 for no loss to 59 for 3.## He added one more wicket to his name as he got Hardik Pandya later in the innings and finished his spell with an impressive figure of 4-0-16-4, where other bowlers were struggling to get wickets.## Pollard came to rescue MI## Kieron Pollard, who had been dropped in last few matches, brought back for the must-win game in place of JP Duminy. When he came out to bat, Mumbai Indians were struggling on 71 for 4 after 8.2 overs. He began slowly but once he got set, he went after Ankit Rajpoot, smashing him for a six and two boundaries before taking Stoinis in next over for 3 consecutive boundaries. He reached to his fifty off just 22-balls and added 65-runs off 36 balls with Krunal Pandya for the fifth wicket.## He dismissed right after his fifty but all of Tye's good work was undone by that time. Krunal Pandya scored 32 runs and crucial runs from the lower order helped MI to finished with 186 for 8 after 20 overs.## Openers provided solid start before Rahul and Finch set up the innings## To chased down 187, Kings XI Punjab were hoping a good solid start from the openers knowing that their middle order wasn't in good form. Charis Gayle and KL Rahul who arguably been the best openers in this tournament. However, Gayle after scoring 18 off 11 balls but got out to Mitchell McClenaghan. He added 34 for the first wicket with KL Rahul. Gayle's wicket brought Aaron Finch at the crease and he played sensible along with Rahul. By the end of powerplay, KXIP scored 57 for 1.## The real platform for KXIP's chase was set by the Finch and Rahul. However, Finch struggled initially to middling the ball but once he got set, played some excellent shots. On the other hand, Rahul who has been in form of his life was going nicely. Both the batsmen took on MI's weakest bowlers Krunal and Hardik in the middle overs. The duo put on 111-run stand off 74 balls for the second wicket before Finch got out to Bumrah after scoring 46 runs.## MI, led by Bumrah finish it off in style## When Finch got out, KXIP still needed 42 off 23 balls and it wasn't looking difficult for Punjab knowing Rahul at the other end. However, Bumrah conceded only 4 runs in 17th over and got Finch and Marcus Stoinis five balls.## Rahul, who was going nicely brought back KXIP with 3 consecutive boundaries to Ben Cutting in 18th overs. With 23 needed off 12 balls, the game came down to Rahul vs Bumrah and in this Bumrah won the race. He came with his variation and had mistimed Rahul over the in-field straight to Hardik in the deep. He gave away only 6-runs in that over. With 17 required in last over, KXIP could manage only 13 runs and lost the match by 3-runs.## KXIP's strategy of sending Axer Patel ahead of Yuvraj Singh and Manoj Tiwary backfired them as Patel could score only 10 off 8 balls.## Jusprit Bumrah awarded Man Of The Match for his match-winning spell while KL Rahul received Orange Cap (leading run-getter) with 652 runs in 13 innings. Andrew Tye has Purple Cap (leading wicket-taker) with 24 wickets in 13 matches.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for reading.

Kuldeep spun RR to gain two points for KKR
2947 days ago
IPL

Kuldeep spun RR to gain two points for KKR

It was Jos Buttler, who again provided Rajasthan Royals a flying start but this time he couldn't repeat his heroic knock as Kuldeep Yadav's 4 for 20 helped Kolkata Knight Riders to beat Rajasthan Royals by 6-wickets at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Tuesday (May 15). With this win, KKR have strengthened their chances to qualify for the playoffs.## Buttler-Tripathi started in fifth gear## After putting to bat first, Jos Buttler and Rahul Tripathi nearly took the game away from KKR. After watchful first over of Mavi, Rahul decided to go after Prasidh Krishna in next over where he hit a six and followed up with three back to back boundaries. Tripathi collected 19 from Prasidh over before Buttler scored 28 runs from Shivam Mavi's over including 2 sixes and 4 fours. Tripathi continued this momentum with a boundary to Sunil Narine in 4th over and collects 10 from that over. The duo put on the 63-run stand before Tripathi fell in trying to play pull to Andre Russell.## Kuldeep and poor shot selection scripted famous collapse of RR## After scoring 68 for 1 in first six overs, Royals were looking all set for the big score before Kuldeep Yadav destroyed RR's batting line-up. It was also the poor shot selections hurt RR as skipper Ajinkya Rahane bowled out by Yadav in trying to play the reverse sweep. Jos Buttler, who was playing well, didn't learn from Rahane's mistake and went for the same shot but could only manage the top edge and caught out Searles at the short third man. Buttler's wicket was massive knowing Royals' middle order weren't in form.## Buttler was believed to be the sole person responsible for RR's late resurgence and what followed was proof of that as Narine and Kuldeep ran through over the out-of-form middle order with their variations. RR kept losing wickets as Sanju Samson misjudged the length of Narine, Stuart Binny failed to read a googly from Yadav's hand and Ben Stokes beat in flight as he chipped a return catch.## Reducing 107 for 7, Jaydev Unadkat swinging a few shots to give RR some shorts of target to defend with 26* off 18 balls including 3 fours and a six.## Stokes fight back but Karthik steers KKR home## Defending 142, RR started with Krishanppa Gowtham with new ball against Narine knowing that spin has been his biggest strength. Narine accepted this challenge and sent first four balls 4,6,4,6 and kick-start KKR's chase.## However, Ben Stokes pulled things back and sent Narine back to dressing room. In his very next over he got Robin Uthappa out on the short ball at the deep backward square to ignite RR hopes. But as the pitch became much easier in the second half of the innings, Dinesh Karthik 41* off 31 balls along with Chris Lynn's 45 off 42 balls comfortably guided his team through the home with two overs to spare despite Stokes' brilliant spell of 4-1-15-3.##Kuldeep Yadav awarded Man Of The Match for his match-changing spell of 4-0-20-1.## For more updates and news, stay tuned to us.## Thanks for reading.