IPL 2017, SRH vs GL: Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan casts a spell before David Warner rediscovers his magic

Gujarat made a steady start after being sent in. Jason Roy had been striking the ball well and Brendon McCullum was getting into the groove. But SunRisers captain David Warner had enough confidence in Khan to bring him into the attack inside the Powerplay overs.

The youngster looked a little nervous, bowling a full-toss first up. Roy tried to sweep it from outside the off stump, getting only a single in the process. A more conventional shot might have pierced the offside but the bowler didn’t mind. He quickly settled into his googly-bowling mode. The fifth ball of the over deceived Brendon McCullum, who picked the wrong’un alright, but played the sweep a little too early. The umpire had an easy decision and the Afghan was up and running, Shoaib Akhtar style.

Khan should have had Suresh Raina the very next ball, another googly, but Warner couldn’t hold on to a sharp chance at first slip. The bowler gave a sheepish smile to his skipper before resuming the spin punch. Aaron Finch became his next victim.

This time the googly was bowled from wide of the crease. The Aussie didn’t pick it at all and played down the wrong line. He was caught plumb in front. Warner decided to continue with his trump card, yet again spot on with his decision-making. Khan gobbled up Raina, with a leg-break for a change. The Gujarat captain expected a googly and was foxed. Raina, in his pomp, might not have erred in his judgment. But at the moment, he looks a pale shadow of his former self. Khan finished with 3 for 19 from four overs but wasn’t done yet. His direct hit from mid-wicket accounted for Dhawal Kulkarni.

A mini battle up front

Bipul Sharma started proceedings for Hyderabad and Jason Roy was the reason. The opener had fallen to Ravindra Jadeja thrice in three ODIs against India earlier this year. So Warner made a smart move by asking the left-arm spinner to open the bowling.

Sharma bowled straight and Roy chose to be circumspect in his first over. An attacking switch, however, looked imminent. After playing a dot ball in Sharma’s second over, Roy decided to turn the screw. But his switch-hit was mistimed and evaded Moises Henriques, who ran back from point, by about six inches. The next delivery was pulled in front of square followed by a lofted drive over mid-on for another four. Back-to-back boundaries swung the momentum in Roy’s favour in the mini battle. Bhuvneshwar Kumar removed him with a back-of-a-length delivery that never arrived. Shikhar Dhawan took a low catch, diving forward, at mid-wicket. Dinesh Karthik and Dwayne Smith did the resurrection job with a 56-run fifth-wicket partnership. But both got out in quick succession.

Spark returns

Raina opening the bowling for Gujarat was always going to be risky business. The idea was right; two left-handers at the crease. Warner’s travails against off-spin of late could also be another reason. But Raina is no Ravi Ashwin, and both Warner and Dhawan were quick to remind him that.

Dhawan fired the opening salvo; a six over long-on, before Warner got into the act. An attempted yorker was clobbered into the sightscreen. Raina dragged his length back, but Warner was quick to react, sending it over wide long-on for another maximum. Any possibility of a Gujarat fightback evaporated as early as in the third over of Hyderabad’s chase. Dhawan mistimed a Praveen Kumar full-toss and perished, but after a long time Warner had been playing like, well, Warner.

The Australian had only one half-century since arriving in India in February. A big score was due. And the Gujarat bowling was too pedestrian to offer a challenge. Tejas Baroka, the callow leggie, bowled half-trackers and conceded consecutive boundaries. And Warner treated IPL debutant Basil Thampi with contempt. He raced to his half-century in 31 balls and remained unbeaten on 76 off 45. Henriques, too, sauntered into a 39-ball 52 not out as Hyderabad won by nine wickets with 27 deliveries remaining.

Brief scores: Gujarat 135/7 in 20 overs (Dwayne Smith 37 in 27 balls, 4×4, 1×6, Roy 31 in 21 balls, 5×4; Rashid 4-0-19-3, 11 dot balls, Bhuvneshwar 4-0-21-2, 10 dot balls) lost to Hyderabad 140/1 in 15.3 overs (Warner 76 not out in 45 balls, 6×4, 4×6, Henriques 52 not out in 39 balls, 6×4) by nine wickets