Our win over Sunrisers Hyderabad showed that cricket can indeed be a great leveller. We had lost to the same team less than 48 hours before Tuesday’s meeting in Bangalore, in a match that went down to the Super Over. So it felt great to have got the better of them this time.
Of course, it might have seemed an easy win in the end thanks to that inspired knock from our captain Virat Kohli, but in reality it was a tricky chase. We made a good start to the game itself, keeping Hyderabad quiet in the first 10 overs. But then Thisara Perera and Cameron White played beautifully as they capitalised on virtually every loose ball.
The target of 162 was a challenging one, but Virat led from the front with that splendid innings. He’s carried his good form from the Test series against Australia into the IPL and we certainly hope he can continue doing that.
Positive impact
Virat showed a lot of maturity, and what a captain’s effort like that does is it leaves a positive impact on the entire dressing room. That’s obviously a welcome sign, especially with another tough game on Thursday against reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders.
Personally, I was disappointed to have missed out against Hyderabad and hope to make amends against Knight Riders. Having A.B. de Villiers back is another huge boost and what’s pleasing for us is he looked in good nick.
Narine factor
We will again need to be at our best to beat Knight Riders who are a very good all-round side. Sunil Narine is just one of several quality players they have in their team but he has again proven to be a handful for opposition batsmen. The guys have watched a lot of him since he’s played a lot of cricket recently, so we feel confident in our ability to take him on. He does have that tendency to surprise batsmen which is why it’s best to play him according to the merit of each ball.
Overall, it’s going to be another interesting clash, but we’ve done well to win both home games so far and aim to continue in that vein.
