Welcome back for the chase. Kohli has a piece of paper in his hands, probably indicating the DLS par scores. Vijay and Amla stride out, Binny to open the bowling. Fly slip in place.
"Yeah, he (Kohli) is in great nick at the moment and incredibly hard to bowl to. It was a pleasure to watch him from the front seat but we have hard work to do. He said he was gonna come for me, but I said that I am hoping I am gonna come harder at you (on him apologizing to de Villiers). We try to keep it as simple as possible, that is the best thing. Go back to basics, stick to yorkers and keep it simple," says Abbott who seemed to be in awe of the innings he witnessed from Kohli.
So how did it all happen? Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle strode out and the intent was clear very early in the innings. If you bowled full, you disappeared, if you bowled short you disappeared. Such was the pressure on the PUN bowlers because of the early charge by both the batsmen that they struggled with their lines and lengths. The crowd were throughly entertained by a sensational 147-run stand. Gayle made 73 off 32 balls, while captain Kohli recorded his 4th hundred of the season despite the seven stitches on his left hand after he split the webbing in the previous game against KOL. That's three tons for Kohli at the Chinnaswamy in four games! AB de Villiers was knocked over for a silver-duck, while KL Rahul too chipped in with a handy 16. Well, nothing much to talk about the bowlers. 18.33, 16.00, 15.33, 11.00 and 9.67 are the economy rates of the bowlers.
My word! Having been asked to bat first, anything above 170 would have been a good score in a 15-over game and BLR will take 211 with both hands. I am sure, at this rate, they would have recorded the highest ever team score if this was a full Twenty20 game. Such is this format. Big bats, shorter boundaries, no help for the bowlers and it's so easy as (by the looks of it) to hit the ball big at will. Absolutely no mercy for the bowlers. Bowling is BLR's biggest weak link but I am sure 211 is enough runs in the bank!
14.6 -
Mohit Sharma to Rahul, FOUR, that's a great way to sign off for the BLR. Very full and outside off stump, Rahul plays the reverse sweep and it almost goes all the way, bounces just inside the third man fence
14.5 -
Mohit Sharma to Rahul, 2 runs, shortish slower delivery on the stumps, Rahul tries to slap it hard over cover, but under-edges it into the on-side
14.4 -
Mohit Sharma to Watson, 1 run, very full delivery on the stumps, Watson drills hard and straight to long-off
14.3 -
Mohit Sharma to Watson, no run, ah! A rare dot ball. Shortish slower ball, Watson tried to pull and was beaten all ends up
14.2 -
Mohit Sharma to Rahul, 1 run, Rahul goes to loft this one, but mistimes it to long-off
14.1 -
Mohit Sharma to Rahul, FOUR, that's nicely done by Rahul. Gets across the stumps and paddles this fine past the man at short fine leg
Shane Watson, right handed bat, comes to the crease
13.6 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, out Caught by D Miller!! This is in the airrrrrr, not timed well, Miller's under it again and he makes no mistake. The carnage comes to end. Great to see many PUN players including Vijay, Miller go to Kohli and congratulate him for a wonderful knock. Kohli wanted to go inside-out, but he mis-hit it, long-off pouched it. Kohli raises his bat to the crowd as he walks off to a standing ovation. Chris Jordan greets him with a hug near the boundary. Kohli c D Miller b Sandeep Sharma 113(50) [4s-12 6s-8]
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
13.5 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, Sandeep Sharma tries the yorker on the leg stump, misses and bowls right in the slot for Kohli to drill hard along the ground to long-on
13.4 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, SIX, full toss and it's been put in the stands. Easily smashed away over mid-wicket and BLR are racing towards 200 here, mind you, this is only a 15-over game
13.3 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, would you believe this? He didn't have a T20 hundred before the start of the tournament and now he has four. Take a bow Virat 'Champion' Kohli. Here's something that's very important folks. Kohli split his webbing on the left hand in the last game against KOL. He did not worry about the injury, decided to play and now has scored a hundred. What commitment. He points his left hand to the dressing room and conveys that he's beaten both rain and the injury to notch up a brilliant hundred. I am told he had seven odd stitches on his left hand. This is a full toss which is easily swung away along the ground through mid-wicket. He takes the helmet off and raises his bat to the crowd
The crowd is right behind their captain. No one's sitting
13.2 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, 2 runs, Kohli drives inside-out this time through extra-cover, on to 99 now
13.1 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, 2 runs, Kohli walks towards the bowler and converts this as a full toss, swung away across the line, Amla tidies up at deep mid-wicket, Rahul races back for the second
Sandeep Sharma [2.0-0-11-0] is back into the attack
Wow! 13 overs done and 181 on the board. This is insane stuff!
12.6 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, 1 run, another full toss, flicked along the ground, tries to repeat the shot he played first ball of the over, but this time deep mid-wicket is able to cut it off
12.5 -
Mohit Sharma to Rahul, 1 run, Mohit gets the yorker perfectly right this time, Rahul backs away and digs it out towards cover
12.4 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, 1 run, Kohli once again steps out, yorks himself this time, dug out to point
12.3 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, now there's nothing wrong with this delivery. That is an absolutely brilliant hit from Virat Kohli. He steps out, has enough time to open the face of the bat at the last moment and squeeze this between backward point and short third man
12.2 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, now Mohit Sharma bowls a flithy slower ball bumper with fine leg inside the ring. Why on earth would you want to bang it short with no protection in the deep on the leg-side. Kohli waits and pulls it past short fine leg for a boundary
12.1 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, oh come on Mohit Sharma! A bloke is batting in the 80s and you run in and bowl a full toss! Well, the bowler was obviously trying for the yorker, but he got it all wrong. Kohli easily splits long-on and deep mid-wicket with this hit
Mohit Sharma [1.0-0-6-0] is back into the attack
11.6 -
Kyle Abbott to Rahul, FOUR, now that's an incredible hit from Rahul. He's hit this with one hand, yet it's gone for four. Full and outside off stump, Rahul slices it over backward point
11.6 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no ball, 1 run, short delivery and the umpires calls that a no-ball, this is the second bouncer of the over. Short delivery on the stumps, Kohli pulls it along the ground to deep mid-wicket
11.5 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, FOUR, no one at sweeper cover, Kohli steps out, reaches out for the drive and sends this length ball through cover-point
11.5 -
Kyle Abbott to Rahul, 2 wides, that's a slower bumper that's too high and Saha fails to make a clean stop
Lokesh Rahul, right handed bat, comes to the crease
Time-out time.
11.4 -
Kyle Abbott to de Villiers, out Bowled!! Now this is clever bowling from Kyle Abbott and the mute button has been pressed at the Chinnaswamy. If you have a look at most of de Villiers's knocks, you would notice that anything close to the stumps would disappear, especially because of his back and across movement. Even those sixes that he hits on the off-side generally clear the rope only by a small distance compared to the ones that fly over the on-side. Probably mindful of that fact, well Kyle Abbott shares the South African dressing room with de Villiers and he must know a thing or two about the master batsman, Abbott bowls a slower ball wide outside off stump, de Villiers was already making room and this was very wide for him, he tried to reach out, but the slowness on the ball foxed him and he only managed to drag it back onto the off stump. de Villiers b Kyle Abbott 0(2)
Kyle Abbott to de Villiers, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!
11.3 -
Kyle Abbott to de Villiers, no run, de Villiers is beaten by the lack of pace on this bumper, the ball rolls to the keeper off the body
11.2 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, the slower ball bumper, Kohli under-edges the pull to fine leg
11.1 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, SIX, what was it from Kyle Abbott? He went cross-seamed and went for the yorker, bowled a juicy full delivery in the end, which was handsomely lofted all the way over long-on. Even ABdV loved that hit and softly punched Kohli's helmet grille to appreciate that hit from the captain
Kyle Abbott [2.0-0-29-0] is back into the attack
AB de Villiers, right handed bat, comes to the crease
10.6 -
Axar to Gayle, out Caught by D Miller!! This is hit hard, but straight to David Miller at long-off. End of a sensational 147-run stand. Full and outside off stump, Gayle wanted to loft this for six, hit it well but hit it flat and it didn't have the distance. This knock should help Gayle's confidence and boy, he's back to full form towards the business end of the tournament. Gayle c D Miller b Axar 73(32) [4s-4 6s-8]
Axar to Gayle, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
10.5 -
Axar to Gayle, SIX, Gayle out-thinks the bowler this time. Axar goes full and wide outside off stump again, but Gayle moved off-side a touch and slogged this hard over mid-wicket
10.4 -
Axar to Gayle, no run, Axar goes flat and wide outside off stump, Gayle drills it back to the bowler
10.3 -
Axar to Gayle, SIX, and this one goes over deep mid-wicket. Axar tries to target the stumps, misses his mark by a yard or so and it sails all the way
10.2 -
Axar to Gayle, SIX, no, no, no! This is seriously poor bowling from PUN. You can't bowl full when the batsmen are waiting to smash you, easily lofted over long-on
10.1 -
Axar to Gayle, no run, very full and outside off stump, Gayle lets it go, but it was just inside the line
9.6 -
Cariappa to Kohli, no run, shortish delivery outside off stump, Kohli cuts and misses
9.5 -
Cariappa to Kohli, SIX, this is short and pulled flat over mid-wicket. It's raining sixes now at the Chinnaswamy. What entertainment!
9.4 -
Cariappa to Kohli, SIX, Cariappa is not learning his lessons! Flighted delivery full and in the slot, with the game shortened, the batsmen have the license to go bang, bang and Kohli deposits this over long-on
9.3 -
Cariappa to Kohli, no run, beaten again! This time Kohli tries to reverse-sweep, the ball once again sneaks under Kohli's bat. He's angry with himself for missing out
9.2 -
Cariappa to Kohli, no run, shortish delivery outside off stump, the ball keeps low and beats Kohli's pull shot
9.1 -
Cariappa to Kohli, SIX, Behardien takes the catch, but he steps on the rope. The umpires check with the third umpire and replays comfirm that it was clearly a six. Flighted delivery outside off stump, Kohli steps out and lofts inside-out, not from the middle of the bat, the fielder there moved to his right and took a good catch, but the momentum took him towards the boundary and the ball was still in his hands when he tried to throw it to Miller who came from long-off
KC Cariappa [2.0-0-37-0] is back into the attack
8.6 -
Axar to Gayle, SIX, that's smashed for a flat six and both Gayle and Kohli celebrate the fifty by doing the "Champion dance". Such a relief for the big left-hander from West Indies, he was struggling for form, BLR backed him and he's justified his selection. This was in the slot to be put away and Gayle didn't miss out and sent this over deep mid-wicket
8.6 -
Axar to Gayle, wide, and another wide down the leg-side, this is the third wide of the over, Saha does well to quickly move to his right and stop with one hand
8.5 -
Axar to Gayle, SIX, century stand for BLR and Gayle moves to 49 with this muscular hit. Flighted delivery from Axar, Gayle slogs this hard over deep mid-wicket
8.4 -
Axar to Kohli, 1 run, Kohli drags this along the ground to deep mid-wicket
8.4 -
Axar to Kohli, wide, again darted down the leg-side, Saha thinks about a stumping but Kohli had his back foot grounded
8.3 -
Axar to Gayle, 1 run, Gayle goes for the sweep, but under-edges it along the ground to deep square leg
8.3 -
Axar to Gayle, wide, that's way outside off stump, wided
8.2 -
Axar to Kohli, 1 run, shortish delivery on the leg stump, Kohli rocks back and punches it to long-on off the back foot. Yet another fifty for captain Kohli. Raises his bat to the crowd and dressing room, gets a great round of applause as well
8.1 -
Axar to Kohli, no run, Kohli pushes this into the off-side
Axar Patel [1.0-0-10-0] is back into the attack
7.6 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, FOUR, can't bowl full tosses in this format. This had width on it and it allowed Gayle to free his arms and hit it over cover, Gayle goes to 42 now
7.5 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, Kohli drills this wide of long-on, thinks about two, but decides against it as he knows that Gayle is not that quick between the wickets
7.4 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, FOUR, wowww! What a shot! How hard did he hit it and how quickly did he get into position! This is a fast bowler bowling above 130kph, Kohli jumps out of the crease, converts a length ball into a juicy full ball and muscles the drive flat over cover, just bounced inside the rope
7.3 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, looked like the change of pace from Kyle Abbott, bowled at 127kph, with third man inside the ring, Kohli tries to opens the face of the bat and run it fine but picks out backward point
7.2 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, 1 run, Abbott goes full and outside off stump, Gayle drills it hard, goes on the bounce to sweeper cover
Vijay and Abbott have a chat. Backward square leg in place, no one at fine leg as well
7.1 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, 1 run, driven away nicely off the front foot. Raced across the turf, Miller moves to his left from long-off and tidies up
Kyle Abbott [1.0-0-18-0] is back into the attack
6.6 -
Cariappa to Kohli, 1 run, goes on the back foot and works it to long-on, keeps strike
6.5 -
Cariappa to Kohli, SIX, and again! Another one that is full from Cariappa, he's not giving too much for the ball to turn either. It almost goes straight and Kohli launches it over long-off
6.5 -
Cariappa to Kohli, no ball, SIX, full toss, not hit from the middle of the bat, is that above waist high? Oh yes, the umpire has his right hand stretched, it's a no-ball and a free-hit to Kohli and BLR. Kohli swung this away to the right of the man at deep mid-wicket
6.4 -
Cariappa to Kohli, no run, flighted full outside off, Kohli crashes it straight to Vijay at cover
6.3 -
Cariappa to Kohli, no run, the carrom ball on the stumps, Kohli wrists to the right of Cariappa who fields in his followthrough
6.2 -
Cariappa to Kohli, FOUR, don't bowl full to this man! He'll thrash you all day, especially with no deep cover in the place. Excellent foot work to get into a nice position to loft this over cover
6.1 -
Cariappa to Gayle, 1 run, oh Gayle is dragging himself for a quick single and he makes it. Well, the throw was wayward at the keeper's end and the man at short fine leg does well to back up. Gayle defended this flighted delivery to the right of cover and set off. When was the last time you saw Gayle charge down the pitch for a single?
Time-out taken. End of 6 overs, 63 on the board without loss, just what BLR would have wanted.
5.6 -
Axar to Kohli, FOUR, cheeky from Cheeku! Axar fires it very full and on the off stump, Kohli reverse-laps it, beats the man at short third man and races to 26 off 16 balls
5.5 -
Axar to Kohli, FOUR, pure power from Kohli. Axar bowls full and in the slot this time, Kohli is very good with his cover drives and he lofts this really hard over the infield for a one-bounce four
5.4 -
Axar to Gayle, 1 run, Gayle goes hard at the pull, but drags it off the inside half of the bat to deep square leg
5.3 -
Axar to Kohli, 1 run, deft touch from Kohli as he opens the face of the bat at the last moment and dabs this flatter delivery to short third man
5.2 -
Axar to Kohli, no run, Kohli rocks backs and cuts, will feel that he missed out there, straight to backward point, a couple of yards either side of the fielder would have been four
5.1 -
Axar to Kohli, no run, flighted delivery outside off stump, Kohli drives uppishly and picks out the man at cover, went on the bounce
Axar Patel, left-arm orthodox, comes into the attack
Gayle is looking very good for a big innings. The last time when PUN came here, he smashed a hundred. Can he repeat the feat? It's a truncated game, but 15 overs is enough time for Gayle to smash a ton.
4.6 -
Cariappa to Gayle, no run, now Cariappa is not willing to give any air on this one, fired at 115kph, pushed back to the bowler
4.5 -
Cariappa to Kohli, 1 run, short enough for Kohli to rock back and punch along the ground to long-on
4.4 -
Cariappa to Kohli, SIX, how on earth has be managed to hit that all the way? Full delivery from Cariappa, Kohli with a strong bottom hand grip lofts it hard over mid-off, goes for a flat six
4.3 -
Cariappa to Gayle, 1 run, Gayle flat-bats this along the ground to long-on
4.2 -
Cariappa to Gayle, FOUR, now that's a good hit from Gayle. Cariappa drops it short on seeing the batsman advance, this one spins away from the left-hander, Gayle makes the adjustment and cuts it between backward point and cover-point
4.1 -
Cariappa to Gayle, SIX, in the airrrrr and just over the man at deep mid-wicket. This was completely mistimed by the big-hitting batsman, the big willow in his hands helped him as it flew away all the way despite not finding the middle of the bat
KC Cariappa, right-arm off break, comes into the attack
3.6 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, life gives one opportunity and Axar has missed it. Kohli pats this length ball to point and sets off, Gayle was not ready for it and sent the captain back. It was too late by then, Patel had all the time to hit at the striker's end but he missed the target
3.5 -
Kyle Abbott to Kohli, no run, just a little short and wide of off, Kohli went too hard on the cut, was not able to make the bat meet the leather
3.4 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, 1 run, surprised I was as Gayle called for two. It was not there, he mistimed the swing off the inner part of the bat towards mid-wicket, Kohli was content with a single
3.3 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, FOUR, this is getting to that mode where a poor soul like me will start consoling his fingers. Gayle once again threw his bat on this fuller length delivery, was not timed that well but had enough to clear the deep extra cover fence
3.2 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, SIX, now I don't blame Abbott for this, this time he went wide of Gayle, slower ball it was. But how do you tame this man? Once again Gayle stayed leg-side and thrashed it wide of long-off
3.1 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, SIX, okay bowl him there and turn back to see the ball sail over your head! Length ball around off, Gayle clears leg and dispatches it over the long-off fence
3.1 -
Kyle Abbott to Gayle, wide, length ball that was angled across Gayle, who missed the swing. It was too wide anyway
Kyle Abbott, right-arm medium, comes into the attack
2.6 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, no run, another back of a length delivery on the stumps, Kohli gets a touch across and tucks it to the right of mid-on
2.5 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, for how long can you keep him away from hitting fours? Keeps his left leg out of the line of the delivery and then thwacks the shortish ball over the bowler's head, despite all that rain the outfield is a batsman's ally here
2.4 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, 1 run, this time Gayle gets the pull right and sends it down to deep mid-wicket for a single
2.3 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, no run, short ball and Saha does well to collect it after it beat Gayle's attempted pull. Mind you Saha is standing up to the stumps and with a big man like Gayle in front, some times it can a bit tough to sight the ball
2.2 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, 1 run, back of a length delivery around off, Kohli mistimes the punch to the left of mid-off
2.1 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, no run, too straight and might have been hazardous for Sandeep. Kohli flicks it straight to the fielder at short fine leg
Keeper is up
1.6 -
Mohit Sharma to Gayle, no run, Mohit is playing smart, he knows that the ball is holding a bit so is not allowing Gayle any pace. Bowled another slower delivery just outside off which eluded Gayle's heave
1.5 -
Mohit Sharma to Gayle, FOUR, the only thing unusual about this heave is that it has not gone the distance. Mohit bowled Gayle a length ball on the stumps, he cleared his leg and then flogged it over mid-wicket for a one-bounce four
1.4 -
Mohit Sharma to Gayle, no run, slow yorker just outside off, almost near the tramline, left alone by Gayle. Mohit was lucky that the umpire did not deem it as a wide
1.3 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, 1 run, nicely done by Mohit, followed Kohli after seeing him make some room. Kohli had to adjust and then he dropped it in front of point for an easy single
1.2 -
Mohit Sharma to Kohli, no run, another back foot punch attempted from Kohli, was not timed well and it just rolled down to Amla at cover
No slip for Mohit
1.1 -
Mohit Sharma to Gayle, 1 run, short ball and Gayle won't be happy with the pull he played, mistimes it to deep mid-wicket for a single
Mohit Sharma, right-arm medium, comes into the attack
0.6 -
Sandeep Sharma to Kohli, FOUR, there is no switch for Kohli, for had there been one, he would switch them off after his heroics in every innings. He just does not need to switch them on, comes into the middle, faces a back of a length delivery, stands tall and punches past cover for a four. It had never been so easy
Powerplay till the 5th over and each bowler can bowl a max of 3 overs
0.5 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, 1 run, push-drives this length delivery past extra cover to get off the mark
0.4 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, no run, now this is a gem! Pitched it on the middle and leg and then got to move away beating Gayle's poke
0.3 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, no run, some away movement, made to look even more lethal due to the angle across Gayle, left alone
0.2 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, no run, back of a length delivery just outside off, Gayle stands tall and punches to cover
0.1 -
Sandeep Sharma to Gayle, no run, length delivery on the stumps, Gayle defends it back to the bowler with ease
Gayle and Kohli are at the crease. Gayle is on strike. Sandeep Sharma will open the attack
Well, that is it for the day then. BLR just gave a power-packed performance and blew away PUN in the cauldron of Chinnaswamy. BLR have leapfrogged to second in the points table now. Tomorrow, GUJ will lock horns against KOL. It should be a high voltage contest between two good sides. Until next time, goodbye and goodnight from all of us.
Virat Kohli (Man of the Match for his 50-ball 113): "Thank you so much (Rameez Raja said that commentators are lost for adjectives when it comes to describing Kohli's batting). Very kind words. To be honest, I didn't think I would get a 100 in 15 overs. I wasn't believing all that was happening around me. I was not willing to look at the scoreboard because I knew I was hitting the ball well and was feeling like I could hit every ball for a four or a six. I thought it was too much for me to take. I thought I would put real pressure on the opposition and get to 200. In previous tournaments we were panicking. We are getting our processes right now. People are doing the right things and contributing. Playing under pressure is doing wonders for us. Gayle getting runs in the last game and today too he came good. Hopefully, we can continue on this. My aim is to get runs for the team. When you get into the zone, you feel like you can hit every ball from point to square leg. Momentum is the main thing in T20s. Today, it was a little tricky. I didn't look to hit any balls, as I was feeling the pain. I felt a bit of gap in my hand and tried to make it thick (Kohli had 7-8 stitches in his left-hand after he had split his webbing in the previous game). First few balls, I was flinching a bit. The first 8 to 10 balls, I was thinking about it, but once I got the flow going and my pain got away, I just tried to keep a base and kept going. Well, three hours for a day. There are another 21 hours to switch off. It is the simple rule I have, train as hard as you can to play for 3 and a half hours. Why relax on the field then? We wanted to go out on the park and express ourselves. I mean from the situation we were in, we had to get four in four. We have got three in three wins. There is no reason why we can't get four in four. Even if it was a five-over game, it wouldn't have really mattered. Guys have got into a situation, where they are not looking at the points table and not even looking at other teams. They are enjoying it and a lot of credit has to go to the backroom staff, too. They are enjoying the atmosphere in the dug-out. We have got the momentum now."
Vijay: "Definitely, they outplayed us. We thought, we could have chased down 180. They really batted well. It was very difficult to bowl to those two (Gayle and Kohli). We tried very hard, but it was not good enough. All we can ask is for the bowlers to keep their calm. We definitely want to finish on a high. We want to play our hearts out and play our best cricket."
BLR put up a clinical performance to crush KKIP and are now placed second in the points table. It has been a great turnaround for BLR as a few games ago, they seemed to have lost the plot. After rain reduced the match to 15 overs per side, it was Kohli, who put up a wonderful exhibition of batsmanship to crack his 4th T20 League ton of the season. Gayle, too, just clobbered the opposition ranks. Once BLR had composed a score in excess of 200, it was always going to be a daunting task for PUN. No wonder, in an attempt to keep up with the escalating run rate, PUN lost their way and slipped towards a heavy defeat
What am I seeing? With just one over to go, the rain is coming down heavily. The covers are back on. Well, the game has been called off as the players from both sides are shaking hands. BLR register another thumping win by 82 runs via DLS method.
13.6 -
Gayle to Sandeep Sharma, 1 run, slower through the air, turned to deep mid-wicket
13.5 -
Gayle to Cariappa, 1 run, tossed up delivery from Gayle, Cariappa pushes it to long-on
13.4 -
Gayle to Sandeep Sharma, 1 run, too straight from Gayle, clipped to deep mid-wicket
13.3 -
Gayle to Cariappa, 1 run, Cariappa drills a low full toss to long-off
13.2 -
Gayle to Cariappa, SIX, now that was muscled by Cariappa. Cariappa just clubbed this full toss over mid-wicket and it cleared the boundary boards with ease. Now, that stroke has been played too late in the piece though
13.1 -
Gayle to Sandeep Sharma, 1 run, very full and zooming in on the stumps, Sandeep digs it out to long-on
12.6 -
Sachin Baby to Sandeep Sharma, 1 run, shorter in length, Sandeep cuts it to cover
12.5 -
Sachin Baby to Cariappa, 1 run, fuller length delivery and on the stumps, Cariappa slogs it down the ground, where de Villiers runs around the boundary rope and makes a sharp save
12.4 -
Sachin Baby to Sandeep Sharma, 1 run, short and wide delivery, Sandeep cuts it to sweeper cover
12.3 -
Sachin Baby to Cariappa, 1 run, tapped to long-off as Cariappa jogs to the other end
Sandeep Sharma, right handed bat, comes to the crease
12.2 -
Sachin Baby to Mohit Sharma, out Mohit Sharma Run Out!! BLR just one scalp away now from ending Punjab's misery. Shorter in length, Mohit cuts it to extra cover, where Watson picks the ball quickly and fires in a throw at the bowler's end, and Sachin Baby whips the bails off. The batsman was nowhere in picture. Mohit Sharma run out (Watson/Sachin Baby) 14(12) [4s-2]
Sachin Baby to Mohit Sharma, THAT'S OUT!! Run Out!!
12.1 -
Sachin Baby to Mohit Sharma, no run, short and wide delivery, Mohit cuts it to extra cover. Even a slight misfield does not result in a run
Sachin Baby, right-arm off break, comes into the attack
Time-Out is in place now
11.6 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, 1 run, yet another low full toss from Gayle, Mohit taps it to long-on
11.5 -
Gayle to Cariappa, 1 run, low full toss and on the stumps, Cariappa pushes it to long-off
11.4 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, 1 run, fuller length delivery from Gayle, driven to cover
11.3 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, FOUR, juicy full toss from Gayle, Mohit slogs it between mid-wicket and long-on and into the fence. Lovely placement there as he bisected two fielders in the deep with needlepoint perfecton
11.2 -
Gayle to Cariappa, 1 run, slightly shorter in length, Cariappa mistimes the drive to long-on
11.1 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, 1 run, Mohit pushes it to cover-point for a quick single
10.6 -
Chahal to Cariappa, no run, flatter delivery and on the stumps, defended
KC Cariappa, right handed bat, comes to the crease
10.5 -
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, out Caught by Gayle!! BLR are just two wickets away from romping home to an easy win. This has been a slick performance put up by them. Mann tries to slap it through the off-side and gets an outside edge to Gayle at slip, who jumps in the air and snaffles the catch above head height. Gurkeerat Singh c Gayle b Chahal 18(18) [4s-2]
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
10.4 -
Chahal to Mohit Sharma, 1 run, the arm-ball from Chahal, pushed to long-on
10.3 -
Chahal to Mohit Sharma, FOUR, a wee bit of width on offer, Sharma aims to slap it through the off-side and gets a thickish outside edge over Gayle at slip into the third man fence
10.2 -
Chahal to Mohit Sharma, no run, Chahal changes his line and bowls it outside off, Mohit sinks on one knee and tries a slog-sweep, but fails to connect
10.1 -
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, Mann nudges it to mid-wicket, where a slight fumble facilitates a single
9.6 -
Gayle to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, low full toss from Gayle, turned to mid-wicket
9.5 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, leg byes, 1 run, sliding down leg, Mohit looks to flick and misses. They pick up a legbye
9.4 -
Gayle to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, full toss from Gayle, Mann heaves it to deep mid-wicket. It was close to being called a no-ball for height
9.3 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, 1 run, Mohit taps it to sweeper cover. It was a flatter ball from Gayle
9.2 -
Gayle to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, pushed down to long-on for another easy single
9.1 -
Gayle to Mohit Sharma, 1 run, pushed through and just outside off, Sharma steers it to backward point
Chris Gayle, right-arm off break, comes into the attack
8.6 -
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, FOUR, flatter and shortish outside off, Gurkeerat sits deep inside the crease and opens the bat face to late-cut it behind backward point
Mohit Sharma, right handed bat, comes to the crease
8.5 -
Chahal to Kyle Abbott, out Caught by de Villiers!! Another one has been chugged down. This has been a sorry tale for PUN today. Pushed through from Chahal, Abbott heaves it to de Villiers at wide long-on, who initially grabbed it. However, he then realized that he was losing his balance and going over the rope. Hence, just lobbed the ball up in the air and to snare the rebound. Kyle Abbott c de Villiers b Chahal 0(1)
Chahal to Kyle Abbott, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
8.4 -
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, shorter in length, Mann cuts it to backward point
8.3 -
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, no run, the TV umpire is beckoned for a stumping appeal, but it is crystal clear that Mann's back-heel was inside the crease. Chahal extracts considerable turn on this legspinner, Mann aims to bury it through the off-side and misses. Rahul took the bails off, but the batsman was fine
Kyle Abbott, right handed bat, comes to the crease
8.2 -
Chahal to Behardien, out Caught by de Villiers!! Behardien, in an attempt to up the tempo, has perished. Anyway, PUN are hurtling towards a gargantuan defeat. Flatter delivery and just outside off, Behardien biffs it straight to de Villiers at long-on. It came off the toe-end and there was no conviction behind that shot. Behardien c de Villiers b Chahal 0(1)
Chahal to Behardien, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
8.1 -
Chahal to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, Mann turns it to mid-wicket and jogs to the other end
Yuzvendra Chahal [1.0-0-13-1] is back into the attack
7.6 -
Watson to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, yorker and on the stumps, Mann squeezes it out to long-on
7.5 -
Watson to Gurkeerat Singh, no run, fuller length delivery and just outside off, Mann drives it into the cover-region
7.4 -
Watson to Gurkeerat Singh, no run, the short delivery and well-directed bumper from Watson, Mann looks to pull and is beaten on the top-egde
Farhaan Behardien, right handed bat, comes to the crease
7.3 -
Watson to Axar, out Caught by Kohli!! Well, Kohli has pouched the catch by running forward from long-off, but in the process of snaffling it, he has hurt his left-hand. Remember, he has 7-8 stitches on his left-hand. Length delivery and just outside off, Patel tries to lift, but gets it off the toe-end and Kohli, with athletic strides, moves forward to take it with both hands. I can see that pain in his eyes. Axar c Kohli b Watson 13(9) [4s-1 6s-1]
Watson to Axar, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
7.2 -
Watson to Axar, no run, another off-pace short delivery from Watson and he bowls it outside off, Patel tries to pull, but connects with thin air
7.1 -
Watson to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, the slower bumper from Watson and he gets good shoulder on it, Mann pulls it awkwardly to short fine leg
6.6 -
Aaron to Axar, no run, slower delivery and Patel tucked it off his hips, could not beat short fine leg. A yard or two away from him and Patel would have got a boundary
6.5 -
Aaron to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, tucks this one with soft hands towards mid-wicket, this is getting sedate with every passing single
6.4 -
Aaron to Gurkeerat Singh, FOUR, short, wide and that is enough for Mann to free his arms on the cut, beat the sweeper cover to his left
6.3 -
Aaron to Axar, 1 run, helps this back of a length delivery to fine-leg and takes a single
6.2 -
Aaron to Axar, FOUR, oh Axar, the lone wolf. Drives this fuller delivery past the fielder at mid-off, this one raced across the fence
6.2 -
Aaron to Axar, wide, shortish ball down the leg-side, Patel misses the whip and it is called a wide by the umpire
6.1 -
Aaron to Axar, SIX, oh a six from Punjab, Patel went with the shot and lofted it through the line. Kept his shape and it sailed over the long-on fence with ease
Varun Aaron, right-arm fast, comes into the attack
Required rate has surged to 17
5.6 -
Watson to Axar, 1 run, this is what he has been doing well, yorker again just wide of off, there is not much Patel can do, squeezes it to sweeper for a single
5.6 -
Watson to Axar, wide, very wide of off, Watson is trying to hard, which he should not, I think
5.5 -
Watson to Gurkeerat Singh, 1 run, Watson goes for yorker outside off, Mann squeezes the drive to sweeper cover
5.4 -
Watson to Gurkeerat Singh, no run, back of a length delivery on the stumps, Gurkeerat Singh tucks to short mid-wicket
5.3 -
Watson to Axar, 1 run, short and with a bit of width on offer, Axar cuts it to sweeper cover for a single. How insignificant singles are at this moment
5.2 -
Watson to Axar, no run, very full delivery outside off, Patel jams it back to the bowler
5.2 -
Watson to Axar, wide, slower short delivery down the leg-side, called a wide
Slip is still there
Axar Patel, left handed bat, comes to the crease
5.1 -
Watson to D Miller, out Caught by de Villiers!! Miller hit this one flat to ABD and then took a moment to make himself believe that it is just not his day. Short delivery from Watson and Miller timed it as well as anyone would have. But was not great with finding the gap, straight to the fielder at long-on. ABD did not have to move an inch. It was as if he was giving catching practice for him. But I am sure he won't be practicing such easy catches. It was a flat batted pull from Miller. D Miller c de Villiers b Watson 3(6)
Watson to D Miller, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
Shane Watson, right-arm fast medium, comes into the attack
4.6 -
Aravind to Gurkeerat Singh, no run, slip in place for Aravind, this time he angles it away from Gurkeerat Singh. He pats it to point, where a little child play from BLR players threatened a single. But Gurkeerat Singh did not take any risk. Actually ABD wanted to stop that shot from Gurkeerat Singh with his legs and almost spoiled it for the other fielder
4.5 -
Aravind to D Miller, 1 run, length delivery around off, Miller punches to cover and gets to the other end
Gurkeerat Singh Mann, right handed bat, comes to the crease
Time-out in place
4.4 -
Aravind to Amla, out Caught by Jordan!! What a catch from Jordan at mid-off. They are confirming with the third umpire. It will take some time. Fair delivery, yes it has been pouched safely there. Amla wanted to go over the top but miscued it completely, looped it low towards mid-off, where Jordan judged it to perfection, timed his dive and caught it inches off the ground. Soft signal was out from the umpire, so going upstairs was just a move to be safe. Amla c Jordan b Aravind 9(6) [6s-1]
Aravind to Amla, THAT'S OUT!! Caught!!
4.3 -
Aravind to Amla, SIX, slower ball perhaps. The shortish length made it even worse, Amla waited for it and pulled it over deep mid-wicket
4.2 -
Aravind to D Miller, 1 run, punches this length delivery to mid-off and set off. Kohli was the fielder there, a direct hit and Miller would have been struggling for sure
4.2 -
Aravind to D Miller, wide, cutter down the leg-side, given as wide but I think it brushed something on its way
4.1 -
Aravind to D Miller, no run, Miller steps down and then tries to swing across the line, was no where close to the delivery, beaten
4.1 -
Aravind to D Miller, wide, slid down the leg-side, Miller does not get his bat on the glance
Sreenath Aravind [1.0-0-8-1] is back into the attack
3.6 -
Chahal to D Miller, 1 run, works this one through mid-wicket and gets off the mark
3.5 -
Chahal to D Miller, no run, Miller wanted to turn it towards the on-side, got it off the inside edge onto his pads
David Miller, left handed bat, comes to the crease
3.4 -
Chahal to W Saha, out Lbw!! Guess who had the last laugh? Chahal it is. Bowled it flat and got it to skid off the surface, Saha went back to pull across the line and was beaten. Was struck in front and the umpire did not hesitate. In fact, he went upstairs to check for the no-ball. After a lot of contemplation, it was adjudged that Chahal's leg was behind the line. I think he got away there, looked mighty close. W Saha lbw b Chahal 24(10) [4s-5]
Chahal to W Saha, THAT'S OUT!! Lbw!!
3.3 -
Chahal to W Saha, FOUR, oh this time he almost got the better of Saha, saw him coming and shortened the length. Saha went for the inside out drive and edged it past a diving fielder at short third man
3.2 -
Chahal to W Saha, FOUR, one four and he resorted to defensive length, in fact over did it. Bowled it well short and Saha rocked back to pull it over mid-wicket
3.1 -
Chahal to W Saha, FOUR, Chahal can afford to toss up, did this time but Saha flogged it over deep mid-wicket, there was a fielder in the deep but it went away from him
Yuzvendra Chahal, right-arm leg break, comes into the attack
2.6 -
Jordan to W Saha, 1 run, full and angled in on the leg stump, Saha sends this fine with a flick, but straight to deep backward square leg
2.5 -
Jordan to W Saha, FOUR, this man smashed a hundred in the final of the 2014 T20 League at this venue! Jordan bowls a juicy full ball again and Saha lofts it over cover
2.4 -
Jordan to W Saha, FOUR, that's poor bowling. Full and in the slot on the off stump, Saha picks it away over mid-wicket for four
2.3 -
Jordan to W Saha, no run, another full delivery wide outside off stump, Saha swings and misses
2.2 -
Jordan to W Saha, 2 runs, full and outside off stump, Saha lofts this over sweeper cover
2.1 -
Jordan to Amla, 1 run, inside edge found, but it doesn't carry to Rahul. Amla tries to fetch this flick from outside off stump, gets the edge and gets away with it. Rahul is unable to make a clean stop
Chris Jordan, right-arm medium, comes into the attack
1.6 -
Aravind to Amla, 1 run, Amla opens the face of the bat and guides it to backward point
1.5 -
Aravind to W Saha, 1 run, short of length delivery on the off stump, Saha taps it to cover-point
Wriddhiman Saha, right handed bat, comes to the crease
1.4 -
Aravind to Vijay, out Bowled!! And that's so unlucky for the batsman! Vijay backed away and wanted to have a crack through the off-side, Aravind cramped Vijay for room with a back of a length delivery. It was not there to play the cut shot and Vijay only manages an inside edge which disturbs the stumps after ricocheting off the pad. Vijay can't believe that he's been dismissed. He looked good with those shots that he played. Big blow for PUN. Vijay b Aravind 16(8) [4s-2 6s-1]
Aravind to Vijay, THAT'S OUT!! Bowled!!
1.3 -
Aravind to Vijay, no run, this is a full ball down the leg-side, Vijay tries to flick, gets it off the pad and Rahul makes a good stop diving to his left
1.2 -
Aravind to Vijay, SIX, that's nicely picked away off the pads, Vijay is so good with that shot. He handsomely launches this over deep mid-wicket
1.1 -
Aravind to Vijay, no run, edgeddddd, but short of Gayle! I'll remind you of one fact. Last year, Gayle scored a hundred and Aravind bagged four against the same opposition. Today Kohli's got one, can Aravind repeat his performance from last year? Time will tell. Well, he almost had a wicket first ball. Vijay tries to dab this off-cutter to third man, played with soft hands, hence it didn't carry to the fielder
Sreenath Aravind, left-arm fast medium, comes into the attack
Looks like it has started to drizzle! We need four more overs to get a result. BLR would want to rush with their overs.
0.6 -
Binny to Vijay, 1 run, full and swinging away outside off stump, Vijay drives it to mid-off and keeps strike
0.5 -
Binny to Amla, 1 run, this is very full and on the off stump, Amla digs it out to mid-on
0.4 -
Binny to Amla, no run, this is one stumps and Amla walks across and tries to help it away fine, Aravind dives to his right at short fine leg and saves a certain boundary
0.3 -
Binny to Vijay, 1 run, good length delivery on the stumps, Vijay softly works it to mid-wicket
0.2 -
Binny to Vijay, FOUR, this time he goes over the off-side and a dreadful misfield from Sachin Baby allows it to go for four! Oh look at that stare from Virat Kohli, look away Baby! Kohli might even burn you with his eyes! Full delivery swinging away outside off stump, Vijay lofts the drive over cover-point, Baby had it covered, but fumbled in the end. Baby apologises to his captain
0.1 -
Binny to Vijay, FOUR, how's that for a start from Murali Vijay! Binny bangs the ball short on seeing Vijay advance, but he doesn't have the pace to fox the batsman, easily pulled away over mid-wicket for four
Vijay and Amla are at the crease. Vijay is on strike. Binny will open the attack