Sunil Narine’s stronger suit is still bowling, but his kamikaze approach with the bat at the top of the order is giving it a real run for the money. So furiously does he swing his shoulders that even shots not off the middle often go the distance. The counterpoint was seen at Chepauk on Monday when the Trinidadian swung so hard that he seemed to hurt his left shoulder and the physio had to come out to put it back in place. There would have been concerns in the Kolkata Knight Riders camp as though whatever he contributes with the bat is still a bonus, Narine is one of their main bowlers relied upon to send down four miserly overs. The West Indian allayed the concerns with a few big hits immediately after resumption, and was the prime driver for the KKR aggression during the Powerplay. He fell going for a big hit against Ravindra Jadeja, but for a player employing such a high-risk method, the results are coming at a consistent rate. It’s a big plus for the player himself, who has worked to reinvent himself to stay relevant when one part of his game is not as potent as it used to be.
A traditional Chepauk surface
The Chepauk surface had had a change of heart over the last season or two, becoming more batter-friendly than one on which the spinners were expected to call the shots. It facilitated the ultra-aggressive batting approach that the home team had taken. But Monday saw a return to what had been the norm at the venue over the years, with the ball stopping, spinning and bouncing for the tweakers. And who better to make use of such conditions than Ravindra Jadeja, who immediately finds the spot from where he can be the most effective. When Sunil Narine and Angkrish Raghuvanshi had ensured a decent comeback for KKR after the early loss of Phil Salt, the left-arm spinner came on to have an instant impact by getting rid of both the set batsmen. Jadeja then got Venkatesh Iyer before spin partner Maheesh Theekshana sent back Ramandeep Singh. The nature of the surface prompted the home team to employ the left-arm variety of Rachin Ravindra as well. It’s the sort of template that MS Dhoni has made his own, choking opposition batsmen with spin and restricting them to a moderate total, so that the hosts don’t have to exert too much in the chase.
Warm welcome for Jamaican
As Rinku Singh fell, the whole of Chepauk had their eyes turned to the KKR dressing room. And after a brief wait, they got the first sighting of Andre Russell. What followed was a scene straight out of Wrestlemania. As the dressing room door opened Jamaican jogged his way into the middle to ear-splitting noise, the loudest any visiting player has received so far this IPL. It took a few seconds for all the cheers to come down. The mood was totally contrasting a little later when each of Russell’s strikes were met with silence.