Varun Chakravarthy of the Kolkata Knight Riders bowled three of his four overs in the final overs against the Sunrisers Hyderabad for an outstanding 1/20.
In Thursday’s Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad, Nitish Rana’s team pulled off a stunning victory that seemed impossible at one point. The Sunrisers failed in their run chase, requiring only 38 runs in the final five overs due to Varun Chakravarthy’s outstanding bowling performance. The veteran spinner, who was tasked with defending 8 runs in the final over, was appropriately dubbed Player of the Game.
With Abdul Samad and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the middle, the Sunrisers needed 9 runs from the final over to win the match. Chakravarthy, on the other hand, conceded only three runs off of six deliveries while also dismissing Samad to give the Knight Riders a five-run victory.
My heart rate was over 200 in the final over, but I wanted them to reach the lengthier portion of the ground. The ball was drifting significantly, and my only option was to attempt a longer shot. “In my first over, I scored 12 runs, Markram hit me for two fours, and that’s how the game goes,” Chakravarthy said at the award ceremony.
Chakravarthy did not just return the Knight Riders to the contest in the final over. He bowled three overs in the final overs, including the 16th and 18th. During those two overs, Chakravarthy was likewise challenging to hit. The unknown spinner conceded only 9 runs in those two overs, finishing with 1/20 in four overs.
Varun commented after the game on the modifications he’s made to his bowling: “Last year I was bowling around 85kmph, experimenting with many different techniques, and I realized I needed to work on my revolutions, so I did.”
On any surface, chasing 38 runs off 30 balls was a simple assignment for any team. Varun Chakravarthy, on the other hand, suffocated the Sunrisers Hyderabad with his final three economical overs.
