IPL 2019 | David Warner, Jonny Bairstow's explosive fifties power SRH to six-wicket victory over CSK

04/17/2019

David Warner and Jonny Bairstow came out all guns blazing and scored brisk fifties to gun down Chennai Super Kings' modest total of 132 on a tricky surface. Sunrisers Hyderabad's bowlers, especially Rashid Khan, were outstanding in restricting the start-studded CSK to such a low total.

David Warner (8.5/10): ‘Elegance personified’ - If someone had to define David Warner’s performance in two words, there could hardly be anything better. He was batting on a different surface altogether and there were no half measures when Warner hits the ball. CSK batsmen made the surface look like a difficult one, but Warner looked extremely comfortable from the outset. The manic batsman has been a nightmare for bowlers in the IPL and continues to wreak havoc at the top. Apart from his prowess with the bat, Warner was a livewire on the field and saved a lot of runs with his incredible athleticism and speed.

Jonny Bairstow (9/10): Warner and Bairstow at the top is like a double-edged sword. If Warner doesn’t get you, Bairstow will. In fact, the latter had overshadowed the Australian on numerous occasions this season. Bairstow started off with a bang but was smart enough to play a supportive role as soon as Warner went berserk. After the southpaw’s dismissal, Bairstow ensured he anchored the run-chase and didn’t let CSK crawl back into the game. His simple behaviour and belligerent batting has earned him the tag of ‘silent assassin’.

Kane Williamson (4/10): Warner set the stage for a massive SRH win, the situation didn’t demand anything exceptional from their skipper Kane Williamson. All he had to do was rotate the strike and carry the team over the line. Barring Warner and Bairstow, not many SRH batsmen have inspired confidence and this was a perfect stage to get some match practice and regain rhythm, but Williamson disappointed once again. His captaincy was remarkable, he did well in manoeuvering the bowlers and constantly looking for wickets.

Vijay Shankar (5/10): Vijay Shankar’s inclusion in the Indian World Cup squad quickly shot him into the limelight but also got him under scrutiny. It was a mixed run for the all-rounder after he excelled with the ball but failed with the bat. Shankar was more than handy while rolling in his arms, scalping the prize wicket of a firing du Plessis to push CSK on the back foot. In the run chase, he floundered on 7 and exposed the vulnerable middle-order.

Deepak Hooda (4/10): The hard-hitting batsman is yet to do something of substance this season. SRH’s only weakness has been their ineffective middle-order, which needs to be addressed at the earliest. Hooda can provide a solid solution to this ever-existing problem if he learns not to throw his wicket away. The situation didn’t demand anything fancy from Hooda as the job was almost done when he walked out to bat along with an explosive Bairstow at the other end. But what did he do? Once again gifted his wicket while being on the brink of a massive victory.

Yusuf Pathan (6/10): The maverick batsman was just a spectator this time as Bairstow sealed the game with a monstrous six. Pathan did get his team out of a tricky situation earlier, but needs to do that on a consistent basis. With SRH in need of victories desperately in their next few games, Pathan has to step up in order to strengthen the middle-order.

Rashid Khan (8/10): Rashid Khan is a proven match-winner, he has the rare ability of bagging wickets in quick succession, which is exactly what he did in this game. He broke the CSK spine by getting rid of Raina and Jadhav in the same over. The ball was coming out quite well from his hand and this time he didn’t play the role of a container and went for the kill straight up. Within a span of six deliveries, the momentum swung right in SRH’s favour with Rashid being the wrecker-in-chief.

Shahbaz Nadeem (4/10): It wasn’t an easy surface to bat on, there was some zip in the wicket for spinners but Nadeem failed to exploit it. Du Plessis broke the shackles by taking on Nadeem where he milked 14 runs off his first over and continued to dominate him throughout the innings. Nadeem returned from the dead with the wicket of a struggling Watson and drew the first blood, but nothing of substance apart from that.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (7.5/10): Bhuvneshwar Kumar and new ball share an old romance, which was quite visible in this innings. His opening spell was a joy to behold as he kept troubling the CSK openers with his impeccable length and deadly movement. Bhuvneshwar’s performance hasn’t been up to the mark this season, but this spell will definitely infuse a lot of confidence in him. He is peaking at the right time, which is good news for SRH, who need to win almost every game henceforth.

Sandeep Sharma (5/10): He has played the role of a third seamer quite well in this bowler dominated side. Sharma has been economical in his last few appearances, however, this night was a little contradictory. With other bowlers squeezing out the runs, Sharma was targeted by most of the CSK batsmen.

Khaleel Ahmed (7/10): The left-arm quick made an astounding return in his previous encounter, where he meant business and continued the good form in this game as well. On both occasions, he hunted in pairs alongside Bhuvneshwar and mixed his pace up quite brilliantly. His return from injury has been impactful for SRH so far, his pace is up and the control has been just brilliant.

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