Andre Russell’s sensational 19-ball 49 rescued victory from the jaws of defeat for Kolkata Knight Riders to leave Sunrisers Hyderabad stunned at Eden Gardens.
In a game that saw Warner make a scintillating 83 in his IPL comeback following a year spent in disgrace as a result of Australia’s sandpaper scandal, Sunrisers looked good for victory in defence of 181-3.
Nitish Rana (68) and Robin Uthappa (35) made early in-roads for Kolkata but with the match slipping away, Russell let loose before India starlet Shubman Gill crowned victory with a six off Shakib Al Hasan.
WELCOME BACK WARNER
David Warner is back. It’s impossible to conclude otherwise after the bludgeoning he gave your television set on Sunday.
A year out of Cricket Australia’s favour hasn’t sated his appetite for runs, nor diminished the size of his bat. That said, neither did Warner stomp out to the crease like a man with something to prove.
He seemed … relaxed. Considered. Self-effacing, even, when he revealed during the interval that he’d been quaffing pickle juice to keep the nerves down.
It didn’t take long before he put KKR in a pickle. Pull shots, biffs over cover, and a cheeky reverse-sweep were all part of the repertoire that brought up an astonishing 37th IPL half-century.
History suggests the 32-year-old is always better off when he lets his bat do the talking – his mishandling of the post-sandpapergate press conference speaks to that – but what transpired after his knock was just as promising for Sunrisers.
With Kane Williamson nursing a shoulder injury, Warner took on his old captaincy duties with relish – even if the teamsheet announced Bhuvneshwar Kumar as skipper.
Warner visibly was the brains behind the field, offered words to his bowlers and tried to keep things cool before Russell turned up the heat.
No matter the defeat, it was a triumphant personal return for the left-hander. There’ll be a few triumphs for Sunrisers at his hands this season.
DANGER RUSS?
This was a jaw-dropping comeback by KKR, make no mistake about it. The run rate was pushing 14 with a handful of overs to go, but the rippling muscles of Russell soon put paid to that with a knock that included four sixes.
It’s his lower body that should be a concern for Kolkata. As recently as last year the West Indian had been clocking 150kph on the speed gun – his chronic knee injury has sadly shaved about 20 of those ks off.
That fact should not be lost in the jubilation. Indeed, the lack of pace in this Knight Riders team should be a huge cause of concern.
Shivam Mavi, Kamlesh Nagarkoti and recently South African Anrich Nortje have all been stripped from the franchise due to injury and an ailing Russell (2-32 from three overs), coupled with IPL greenhorn Lockie Ferguson (0-34), does not look like a recipe for success.
Knight Riders stemmed the flow of Warner and Co when the pitch slowed down a touch, but the sight of star spinner Sunil Narine exiting the stage after sustaining an injury in the field would hardly have warmed the cockles either. This weakness will surely come back to haunt them.
.@KKRiders needed 53 off the final three overs. It looked easy once Andre Russell brought out the big hits 💥https://t.co/v7YaeOjvNd #IPL2019 #KKRvSRH pic.twitter.com/tR03mGGzF2
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) March 24, 2019
VIJAY VISION
For all the talk of Shankar becoming Sunrisers’ tide-turner at No.4, the 28-year-old swaggered out after the fall of opener Jonny Bairstow to shovel more coal into the furnace alongside Warner.
The 28-year-old has shown the type of form that could make him an ODI mainstay – his nerveless performance in Nagpur against Australia the catalyst – and his trade back to the Sunrisers should only accelerate that sentiment.
After one season at the Delhi Daredevils, Shankar is back to supplement a batting cast that lacks pizzazz even with Warner in the side. He was just as aggressive as his Aussie team-mate, swatting aside the Kolkata bowling to a strike-rate of more than 160 with an unbeaten 40.
Was it a match-winning knock? Ultimately not, but it should have been after the innings closed on 181-3.
When Williamson returns, the Warner/Bairstow and Williamson/Shankar duos give Sunrisers two tantalising yin and yang options. These four will go on to dish out far more hurt than the pain of this defeat.