Sehwag: Surprising to see so many successful chases this IPL

Virender Sehwag 09:45 21/04/2016
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  • Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir.

    The results so far this IPL have been incredible. All but one matches have been won by teams batting second and that has become the trend. Teams batting first are coming up with decent scores but they are being chased down with ease. It’s a surprise for me because in last year’s edition we saw teams struggle to chase down 150-160.

    It has been quite difficult for teams batting first but I feel it is still early days. Once we get a few more matches, teams will settle down and we might start to see some close games.

    If we look at the sides that have performed well, be it Kolkata Knight Riders or Gujarat Lions, their top order has been in excellent touch. Openers like Gautam Gambhir and Aaron Finch are milking the runs and it is no coincidence that both the Knight Riders and Lions have won their three games chasing.

    Other matches also followed a similar pattern. We saw Royal Challengers Bangalore score 191 and that was not enough against Delhi Daredevils, with Quinton de Kock hitting a superb ton. Mumbai Indians chased down 188 against Kolkata Knight Riders while Gujarat also reached the 164-run target against Rising Pune Supergiants easily.

    What it means is that even if you put up the runs on board, your bowlers have to be on top of their game. And looking at how easily most sides have chased the totals this time, I believe the bowling has been below par so far this edition.

    The wickets have been good to bat on too and with teams struggling with their bowling combinations, it’s no wonder the results have been this way.

    Also, it has been a long T20 season, especially in India starting from the World T20, and the batsmen know very well what is needed on Indian wickets.

    The only way to break this pattern is for the bowlers to really improve their game. But that is easier said than done in T20s.

    However, I am confident things will change as the teams zero in on their ideal playing XI.

    Until that time, it could well be all about chasing totals with the focus on openers. As I have always maintained, the first two batsmen play a critical role in limited overs cricket.

    In T20, it is even more crucial as you only have 120 balls to bat. And as we have seen so far, top order players have dominated the run-scorers’ chart. When your openers score big, you get to dictate the course of the match. What this also means is that the players in decent form need to come in as early as possible.

    As far as my team Kings XI Punjab is concerned, the issues with our main batsmen continue. Our openers Manan Vohra and Murali Vijay are in decent form but we really need skipper David Miller and Glenn Maxwell to come into their own.

    The backbone of our batting is not firing and with our middle order also not among the runs, the results are not going our way. Also, those who do get runs are not going beyond 30, 40, 50.

    What Punjab’s batsmen need to realise is that once you get a start, you have to really cash in.

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