Yuvi's run-out of Colin Munro was the turning point in Eliminator : Gautam Gambhir
Analyzing KKR's elimination from IPL 2016 against SRH, Gautam Gambhir singled out Yuvraj Singh's direct hit to take out big-hitter Colin Munro as the turning point in the match. Gambhir also talked about how he and the lower-order batsmen had let down the team in the crucial chase.
In an exclusive column in the Hindustan Times, Gambhir talked about the turning point in the Eliminator. Chasing 163, KKR were off to a reasonable start with 53 runs off 6.5 overs for the loss of just one wicket. But it all changed when Munro who was just looking to get into the groove was run out by a stunning throw by Yuvraj Singh.
“Post Robin’s dismissal Colin Munro walked into bat. With Hyderabad playing a pace-heavy bowling attack our plan was to unleash Munro on them. He was beginning to look confident before yet another needless run out hit us. I thought the New Zealander had it under control as he had called to run towards the danger end. But Yuvraj nailed him with a direct hit. I thought the game turned for us at that point,” he wrote.
Gambhir also rued the lack of application on his part in the knock-out after having scored a run-a-ball 28. He holed out soon after Munro's dismissal to leave KKR at 63/3, and Yusuf Pathan followed suit 6 runs later.
“Manish Pandey started off well but was hit by regular loss of wickets at the other end. I didn’t do justice to Manish by playing a rather laborious looking pull shot. It was all quite disturbing: the continuous fall of wickets and then the lack of big-hitting by our lower-order batsmen,” Gambhir said.
The Kolkata side looked to be in with a marginal chance until the 16th over with 6 wickets in hand. But they succumbed to the rising required rate and were eventually restricted to 140 by Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Gambhir turned gloomy in the end of the column talking about what evidently was a painful way out for the two-time champions. “The void is what stares back at me now. It’s this place where there is no cricket for me. Trust me, guys, for a sportsperson, there isn’t anything worse than sitting at home and watching his peers play on TV. Unfortunately, we as a team chose this for ourselves,” he concluded.
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