Champions Trophy, India vs Pakan: How Hardik Pandya plotted Saud Shakeel’s exit | Cricket News
Middle overs, slumberous surface, batsmen in mood for building the innings forward rather than blazing boundaries, a medium pacer needs to plough deep into his cricketing wisdom to poach a wicket. Hardik Pandya, his knack of setting-up batsmen less celebrated, psychoanalysed Saud Shakeel and hung a clever ruse. Saud is an instinctive puller of the ball and backs himself to take on the fielder. Unlike some of his Asian brethren, he goes really back in the crease and swivels his body to get the control and placement.
So when Hardik went short, the third ball of the 33rd over, he imperiously pulled him towards the fence. The next ball was slow, short of length and outside the off-stump which he thudded to point for no runs. The next though was the heavier short ball, not on his body as last time, but outside the off-stump. So far used to the un-dressing pace of Hardik, he pulled him without any hesitation. The ball came quicker, got a tad big on him, and he mimed the ball to deep midwicket’s grasp. While at first sight, it seemed like the batsman’s indiscretion, in reality it was a clever seamer cleverly entrapping a set batsman.
Life in the slow lane
161 dot balls against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy opener which let the run rate climb sharply during the chase of 321. Good teams learn from such makes. But not Pakan. Credit to the Indian fast bowlers, especially Hardik for giving Pakan batsmen no room to free their arms. There were reinforcements in place to cut out Mohammad Rizwan’s sweep option. The wicket wasn’t two-paced but perhaps a bit slow. (the second innings will give a clearer picture).
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Saud Shakeel used the paddle shot over the wicket keeper to get a four off Axar Patel. A boundary after 32 balls. It was a no-boundary phase between overs 15.1 and 24.2. Even during the chase against New Zealand, Pakan’s policy was to save wickets but the acceleration came only from Khushdil Shah’s 69 off 49. Both Rizwan and Shakeel struggled to do the basics right – knocking the ball around in the gaps to take singles and twos.
They got into odd positions, perhaps giving too much respect to certain deliveries, without getting to the pitch of the ball to dig themselves into a hole. Any attempt at improvisation was half-hearted. After a steady start, the two wickets of Babar Azam and Imam-ul-haq, put the brakes on the Pakan innings. But Rizwan and Shakeel pulled the hand brake and decided to go nowhere. Even when they timed the ball well, they had a knack of finding the fielders. Block–block the two Pakan batsmen played into India’s hands. Rizwan is a busy player, like wicketkeepers Pakan produce, but on Sunday his many movements at the crease didn’t result in big shots. Will this first-gear phase hurt Pakan?
– Nihal Koshie
