SRH vs KKR | Player Ratings - Jonny Bairstow, David Warnerâs heroic innings help Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Kolkata Knight Riders by nine wickets
Jonny Bairstow and David Warner played mind-boggling innings to help SRH track down the target of 160 runs in 15 overs with nine wickets to spare. The duo, especially Bairstow, punished the sloppy KKR bowlers and made the most of batting-friendly conditions to help SRH rise on the points table.
David Warner (9/10): Boom Boom Warner! Is there a possible way to stop Warner? How can someone be so consistent? Is he even human? These are the kind of questions fans would be coming up with after watching Warner wreak havoc at the top this season. Even the experts have started to run out of options and opinions now. He has been as consistent as the sunrise this season and shouldered the run-scoring responsibility effectively. Gradually, Warner is earning the tag of best T20 batsman in the world with his brute force and finesse with the bat. Â
Jonny Bairstow (9/10): If Warner wonât get you, Bairstow will! It was an insane pick by the SRH at the auction and Bairstow has repaid the faith with interest. You would never want to give a reprieve to a batsman of Bairstowâs calibre, he will definitely make you regret. After being dropped on 1 by KC Cariappa, the Englishman matched Warner for stroke-to-stroke and his batting rendered a joy to behold. The duo made a mockery of KKRâs bowling and made the target look like a cakewalk. Just like the previous game, Bairstow once again finished off the game after his partnerâs dismissal to ensure a sound victory. Â
Kane Williamson (7/10): Williamsonâs captaincy has been remarkable as he has maneuvered the bowlers well and the field placements have simply been astute. After Warnerâs dismissal, the situation hardly demanded anything fancy from Williamson and he was smart enough to nudge the ball into the gaps for singles and doubles as Bairstow sealed the win with some monstrous hitting.Â
Vijay Shankar (6.5/10): Shankar accounted for a brilliant run out of Dinesh Karthik that broke the KKRâs spine during a rebuilding phase. He didnât get a chance to take guard as the top-order finished the game in a hurry. However, Shankarâs real test awaits once Bairstow leaves for England World Cup camp on April 23.Â
Deepak Hooda (6/10): With Warner and Bairstow at the top, SRHâs middle-order has hardly been tested in the last two games. However, in Bairtsowâs absence the opponents will definitely try to exploit this weakness, which is when players like Hooda, Shankar and Pathan have to step up.Â
Yusuf Pathan (6/10): Just like many batsmen in the SRH dugout, Pathan too has not got enough chances to bat this season. But with the reputation getting a severe beating thanks to his slow batting, which is a pale shadow of his former self, Yusuf wouldnât like to be sitting idle in the dug-out, rather wouldâve definitely wanted to come down hard to hit a six or three.Â
Rashid Khan (8/10): The Afghan boy is shining bright and how! A fine mixture of talent and guile, Rashid has debunked the idea of leg-spinner being an expensive one. He bowls that unplayable length and keeps the batsman on his toes with some wily variations. As usual, this outing was again outstanding for him, especially the 18th over to Piyush Chawla, where he produced five consecutive dot balls to keep Andre Russell away from strike. SRH did their homework right and saved their primary weapon for the big gun Russell, thatâs the kind of confidence they have in Rashid. Russell only faced a solitary ball from the leggie where he nudged it for a single and was dismissed in the following over.  Â
Shahbaz Nadeem (6/10): After conceding 18 runs in the first over, who would have thought that Nadeem will even bowl his full quota of overs let alone being economical? Brought into the attack in the second over itself, Nadeem was taken for cleaners, but returned from the dead to concede just 12 runs of the next three. This is the kind of ability that garners attention and earns selectors trust, and the left-arm spinner was right on the money despite the presence of three left-handers during his spell.Â
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (7/10): Itâs almost like his World Cup selection has infused new life in the right-arm pacer. His career graph is only getting better, something that was SRH badly need for. His numbers may not tell you the exact story, but Bhuvneshwar was very effective with the ball in this game. Despite being smashed for two sixes in his final over, Bhuvneshwar stuck to his guns and dismissed the Caribbean giant to hammer the final nail in the coffin. Â
Sandeep Sharma (6/10): His figures would have certainly had a different look had Nadeem held on to that catch rather than parrying it over the fence. He bowled well in patches and did well to control things in the middle overs. Â
Khaleel Ahmed (7/10): In this format of uncertainties, a bowler cannot afford to step a foot wrong or else he would be taken for sixes. After bowling erratic lengths to Narine, where he was dispatched for boundaries, Khaleel maintained his composure and cleaned up the southpaw with canny variation in pace. He has provided SRH with a wicket-taking factor since his return and will be the man to watch out for in the games to come.
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