Sunday, April 7, 2013

IPL 6 - Mumbai Indians Pull Off One In Pollard's Match

Kieron Pollard justified his huge billing as a T20 player when he finally got a chance. I cannot understand why the Mumbai Indians keep him in the dressing room when the whole world knows that this man should be sent out to the middle. They did that in the first match and lost it and like Ajay Jadeja said in frustration about why Pollard was not being sent in - 'dikahane ke sher hote hai'. But today when Mumbai Indians lost its famed batting order pretty soon it had no place for Pollard to hide and the big man ambled in and showed why he is a T20 game changer with some of the most effortless big hits I have seen to help his team post a decent total of 140 plus.

But then you can never write away any team where the mythtical MSD plays - and certainly not when he is in the middle even if the asking rate is 15 an over. (It was only 12 this time, when most teams would have packed up.) With the precision of someone who knows the future, MSD started upping the ante even as he lost all his batsmen and got it all ridiculously under control from a seemingly hopeless situation to 12 runs in two balls. A huge swipe at Munaf Patel's first ball and one could see MSD's eyes relax as he thought he had put enough to clear the fence.

It would have been 6 runs in 5 balls for CSK if it had.

And then a wince on MSD's face.

For the viewers a huge man ran along the boundary line, and in a blur of activity twisted and turned and contorted to get himself into a position as he desperately strove to get in line with the ball as it was heading out of the ground for a 6, leaped up like a cat, caught on to it securely in mid air, landed awkwardly inches inside the rope, steadied himself as he twisted himself right again, and ran in. Kieron Pollard changed the destiny of the game and for once surprised the man whom destiny favors more than any in this game - MSD.

Pollard almost single handedly, won the game for the MI. Use him better gentlemen. We want to see more of him. And MSD, great show again.

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