KKR never bound to improve

Well if one goes through yesterday's match between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Mumbai Indians, once again the Kolkata Knight Riders were sen getting to their old tactics when they retained as many as 7 wickets by the end of the 20th over yet again putting up a modest total of just over 150 on the board. None of the three batsmen who made it to the crease had their strike rates more than even 140 when a strike rate of 150 is said to be ideal in the T20 match. The KKR innings was more or less like a test innings where wickets are kept intact.

No matter that all three batsmen from the Kolkata Knight Riders namely Chris Gayle, SouravGanguly and Owais Shah came up with decent scores when they scored 75 and 31 each. But, what is the use of the same when that could hardly guarantee them a face in the match let alone a victory. They had to be specially reminded that they were facing a team that is at present positioned at the top of the points table. Nothing special could have been expected from SouravGanguly and Owais Shah taking into account their hard hitting capabilities. But, Gayle is known for his hard hitting abilities.

Chris Gayle was the first batsman in the history of the T20 game to have scored a century when he belted the South African bowlers for a 57 ball 117 in the first match of the inaugural T20 world cup held at South Africa. But, the way he was found batting in the game against the Mumbai Indians once again showed the pressure which he was supposed to be having that was imposed by his team and not by the opposition. If this is the way the KKR are found playing repeatedly, it shows what the coaches are upto. When an ordinary cricket enthusiast like me can find the drawback the KKR are facing, it is confusing why the coach has not been able to do?

On the otherhand, even the Mumbai Indians lost not more than 3 wickets like the KKR to overtake the total of 155 to win. More than the effort by the Mumbai team on the field, it was their game planning which saw them victorious at the end of the day. They were well aware of the team strategy of the KKR that they would not get into a good score despite having so many wickets in hand. This was evident when Sachin Tendulkar bought in just 5 bowlers who bowled their complete quota of 4 overs each. No matter if they couldn't get wickets but were successful in restricting the opposition to a below par total.

The way the RCB's IPL campaign starts

Well despite the fact that yesterday the Royal Challengers lost their first match of the tournament to the Kolkata Knight Riders, this need not draw any sort of criticism be it from the fans, the owner or even the coach f the RCB- Ray Jennings. This has been the usual way the Royal Challengers kick start their IPL campaign by losing the very first encounter rather miserably be it against any opposition. This time as well, the result was no different when the RCB lost to the KKR who were positioned last on the points table in the previous edition held at South Africa.

It was to the same Kolkata Knight Riders that the Royal Challengers Bangalore lost miserably in the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League a couple of years back. That was the match where Brendon McCullum scored the highest individual score of 158* aiding his team to a total of 223 on the board. And, the Royal Challengers had absolutely no answer to McCullum's blasting shots. They gave up the match the moment a total in excess of 200 was put up on the board. The RCBs lost all their 10 wickets for a score of 82 runs on the board, which were 76 runs short of what McCullum could manage.

The only reason for the Royal Challengers to feel happy was that they did not lose all their 10 wickets despite being unable to challenge the Kolkata Knight Riders' bowlers. The RCBs put up a run rate in excess of 6 an over which at one stage of the match seemed a tough task. The RCBs made the KKR batsmen to come close to the ultimate over to score the winning runs. This can bring up the statement that "had the RCBs put up an additional 20 runs on the board, they could have well won the match" no matter to what extent the statement holds good.

Whatever happens, Jacques Kallis can never let his team down and this time as well he has done the same when he carried his bat throughout the innings despite wickets falling from the other end. At the same time, one cannot dispute the fact that the Kolkata Knight Riders were playing in the Eden Gardens wherein they are guaranteed the home advantage. This time, fortunately for the Royal Challengers, Brendon McCullum was not present in the KKR squad to remind the RCBs of the nightmare he had inflicted on them a couple of years back. Anil Kumble once again came back to his test playing days when he bowled 4 overs by not taking a wicket but still not even going in for runs as well.

A surprise on the first day itself

Well hardly anyone would have expected the team that finished last in the previous years' edition of the Indian Premier League to beat the team that won the championship the same year. Things started the same way as expected for the Kolkata Knight Riders when they lost 2 wickets even before the scoreboard had something to read. It was fascinating to see the first two wickets falling when the score was zero and the next two wickets falling when the score was 31. And, what happened following that is well aware from the scoreboard itself which is needless to be said I suppose.

The Kolkata Knight Riders did exceptionally well to see their team go past 150 runs when at one stage even a 100 on the board would have made the players of the Kolkata Knight Riders feel satisfied for the fact that atleast they can bowl 10 overs to the Deccan Chargers who had the likes of Gilchrist and Symonds in their ranks. The run rate when the fourth wicket fell was just above 6 an over which eventually happened to be over 8.0 an over. All thanks to the two men out there namely- Owais Shah and Angelo Mathews who put up an unbeaten 131 run partnership.

Angelo Mathews was found to be a failure in the bilateral series between Sri Lanka and India which was played a couple of months back. But, this time he was the man who ensured a turnaround to his team which not only won the game but also Mathews was awarded the man of the match. It is nonetheless another case of underestimating the opposition from the Deccan Chargers who had anticipated a win against the Kolkata Knight Riders even before the match had begun. And, finally they had to pay the price for the same. A close look at the KKR squad doesn't reveal any strong batting names.

The only batsmen who can be thought of to have a huge fan following them were Sourav Ganguly and Brad Hodge, both of whom departed at early stages of their innings. Following them were Pujara who did what was expected off him when he went back runless. On the other hand, the Deccan Chargers had the likes of Gilchrist, Rohith Sharma, Symonds and Gibbs, all of whom were thought to be big hitters. Likewise, only Gilchrist & Symonds would have been enough for any opposition which didn't happen in the 1st match. So was the case with the KKR's bowling which had no decent names if not for Ishanth and Langeveldt and that too compared to the other bowlers of KKR.

And, the Deccan Chargers had Symonds, Vass and Ojha who have played international matches before but could not bail their team out yesterday. THis is the magic of T20 cricket and more so in the IPL.

Unofficially,Kolkata Knight Riders Lose..

With the match between Delhi Daredevils and the Kolkata Knight Riders being washed out due to rain,I feel it is a wrong statement to cite rain as a factor for shattering the dreams of the Kolkata Knight Riders' of entering the semi finals of the Indian Premier League.Even if there were no rains,a Kolkata win was just an illusion I feel.All that they could do was to start with a bang in the first encounter against the Royal Challengers Bangalore and continue with a series of losses to all the major teams.

Had the match between the Delhi Daredevils and the Kolkata Knight Riders been played,all eyes would have been on Delhi Daredevils team that was charging forward compared to the Kolkata Knight Riders.Well,amazingly,rain has favoured the perfect team.And the Delhi Dare Devils seem to be the team that has the capacity to make it to the last four.But,still my vote would go in the favour of the Mumbai Indians-for they seem to be playing better cricket compared to someone like Chennai Super Kings.

Of the four so called icon players,two of them have given up the hopes of making into the big stage.Only two others in Delhi Daredevils and Mumbai Indians are proving something worth.It would be worth noting the soft target provided for the Kolkata knight Riders by Royal Challengers Bangalore,which saw Brendon McCullum making most of them.But,when it comes to the really mattering stage in Delhi Daredevils and the Kings XI Punjab or even the Rajasthan Royals,sorry to say this.The Kolkata Knight Riders are no where near the mark of victory.

And what much difference would have it made,had the match between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Delhi Daredevils been played.Another loss for the Kolkata Knight Riders and a disappointment for Kolkata Knight Riders' fans.Alas!the fans have something to take home though if not the memories of the match.Guess what?Exactly!The cheerleaders.Ha ha ha..

Yousuf Pathan Again!

Well it looked as though Sourav Ganguly couldn't get out of the first meeting with the Rajasthan Royals-the captain of whom slammed Ganguly of sacrificing the spirit of the game when he appealed against a suspicious catch claimed to have been taken by Greame Smith.Congrats! Ganguly won that encouter.And once again "ONLY THAT ENCOUNTER".Lets not talk or cast our eyes on the result of that match.This was what happened in the first meeting between the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Rajasthan Royals.

This devil never stopped the Kolkata Knight Riders for the second time as well as the Kolkata Knight Riders though this time not owing to any controversial appeals,but some self destruction by them when they missed two run out chances in the Rajasthan Royals' innings.And this time Ganguly had no one to take the blame.Some though not good batting,it was a good recovery from the Kolkata Knight Riders.From 59/2 after 10 overs to 147 at the end of the innings.

But,one familiar face and name continues to hit our senses is that of Yousuf Pathan.I feel that he's probably the best bargain in the IPL.Bought for $0.475M,this amount never went to drains. Rather it was returned with compound interest I believe.Once again failing to break his own record of scoring the fastest fifty for yet another time.And this time another big one would have seen the record bettered by 2 balls.And before this,the same chap was found to take a crucial wicket of David Hussey (who enjoyed the distinction of being the highest six hitter until Sanath Jayasuriya overtook his tally )

After this match,the one name that would be in the betters' as well as the cheering fans would be Yousuf Pathan.

Another D-L Debacle

Well with the T20 game of cricket itself lasting so short duration,imagine what would the situation be if there is a case of a bad weather,or heavy downpours as it happened during the match between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders which was eventually won by the as usual Chennai Super Kings.One fact that has to be noticed here is that whenever there is a necessity for the Duckworth-Lewis method to take over,the team that would be in favour would at most of the times be the team which has been the upper hand in the series.Like it happened in the South Africa-Sri Lanka match in the 2003 WC which was awarded to Sri Lanka though it was South Africa who was in need of one.And the next bast example that I can give is the semis of the same in which Australia (who held the upper hand through the tournament) ended winners.

Coming to this match,the Kolkata Knight Riders didn't do a debacle as it was done by the Delhi Daredevils in the previous encounter.But,the fate of the Kolkata Knight Riders had different plans.Though not an extraordinary innings,a decent one from the blades of Salman Butt,followed by an OK like game from Das.But,some hats off to Makhaya Ntini who got yet another hattrick in the tournament.An unknowing one.None of them even Ntini didn't realize that he had done something special with the ball.

The tournament is turning out to be a special one ..something that even the World Cup that comes once in every four years dosen't have.The tournament has so far witnessed five fastest centuries with each one of them breaking the previous record with the number of balls taken into consideration.And the tournament has so far seen three hattricks.The number of such feats in the world is at the most two in the 2003 edition (which had Sri Lanka's Chaminda Vaas & Australia's Brett Lee).

But,still I wish the Duckworth Lewis method should not be used to predict the match results which would give rise to yet another format of the game.Probably a T10 match.

30+ Players Bowl Out kolkata Knight Riders For a Mere 60+

If people's memories are short,here is once again a reminder for the team that was selected for the Common Wealth Bank series in which senior players of the likes of Sourav Ganguly,Rahul Dravid and V V S Laxman were left out owing to the false illusion of the fact that the team needs young legs (god knows why) and finally even stood by their selection when the team won the Common Wealth bank series 2008 in the first two of the three finals.Adding to that there was even the World Cup winning T20 side.And no credits to Sachin Tendulkar.

But,people,just take a look at yesterday's match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians.There was Sachin Tendulkar who took 4 catches to become the highest catch taker in a match,and then there was Shaun Pollock who took match winning figures of 3/12 and last but not th least Sanath Jayasuriya who had to sadly miss out on scoring the fastest 50 of the tournament.For he scored 48 of just 17 balls.But,some relief as he became the highest six hitter in the tournament by hitting 18 sixes to surpass David Hussey's tally of 17.

All of whom are aged 30+.Well on the other hand we even have players like Rahul Dravid,V V S Laxman,Ricky Ponting,Sunil Joshi etc who are found to prove these above written articles wrong.But,what about people like Robin Uttappa,Graeme Smith,A B Devilliars and few others who despite having young legs are yet to fire.Some firing young legs that I can show is Rohith Sharma & Goutam Gambhir.And there are even players like Parthiv Patel and Dinesh Karthick who can score a six only if the ball is extremely fast and hits the top edge.Congrats "Parthiv" on that(match against Delhi Daredevils in the first round).

Finall The Mumbai Drought Ends

Last night was a relief for most of the Mumbai fans out there not for on, but for many reasons.The first being the return of the local hero in Sachin Tendulkar,whose introduction would be foolish thing to do.And then,there was one batsmen from Mumbai Indians' side who finally came out with a classical knock when the fans witnessed the second fastest hundred in the tournament from the blades of Sanath Jayasuriya.

11 sixes by Sanath Jayasuriya on a ground where he was found blasting an unbeaten 151 to carry his team (the then world champions) to the finals of the Pepsi Independence Cup and eventually win the series.This is the second time that I know that Sanath Jayasuriya hit 11 sixes after the first instance against Pakistan in the Singer Cup 1996-where he blasted 134 off just 65 deliveries.And if this chance was let off by Jayasuriya,it would mean the end of hopes for the Mumbai Indians as well. Thank god he didn't let that happen.

His knock against the Chennai Super Kings reminds me of the knock played by Adam Gilchrist when he was found smashing the Mumbai Indians repeatedly over the mid on side.And Sanath Jayasuriya's knock was something similar to that.Don't know as to what might happen in future regarding either Sanath Jayasuriya or Mumbai Indians,after even the same Adam Gilchrist had nothing to prove after his fastest hundred.As far as this math went out,it was a treat to watch as i-a huge fan of Jayasuriya could see him blast the bowlers,though there was a superb bowling performance when he took 3/19 and also 2 catches to empower his team to victory against Kolkata Knight Riders.

The last time I saw Sanath Jayasuriya play a splendid innings was in the T20 game against New Zealand-where he scored 61 runs off just 42 deliveries.Well if this is the way people like Sanath Jayasuriya,Shahid Afridi,Adam Gilchrist...so on and so forth (who are known for their big hitting) goes,it would be a real success for a tournament where players are paid astronomical sums.

Return With A Bang!!

Well in the game between Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings there was Laxmipathy Balaji who was found to make a grand comeback,the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils saw the man whom people love to hate make a terrific comeback when he sent four batsmen back to the pevilion every time he came out to bowl out there.

The man was found to make news for all the bad reasons had something good in his very first Indian Premier League match.But,once again he's a man whom people love to hate.And once again he's made atleast Shahrukh do this.For his services were not available for most part of the IPL would have annoyed atleast me if not everyone.As far as the match goes,both the teams out there had to face humiliation when it came to batting.The first being the Kolkata Knight Riders who were bowled out for a mere total of 133 that was assumed to be chased down in a wick with the likes of Goutam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag.But,the Shoaib factor was not taken into account I guess.

And the funny thing the I like to highlight is the falling of three wickets in Laxmi Ratan Shukla's first five deliveries.So is it Shoaib Akthar who rattled the Daredevils' batsmen or the Delhi batsmen themselves got into self destruct mode.Well it is left for you people to judge it out.And the most successful bowler of the match being given just 3 out of four overs that could have bowled.

Well..I have a suggestion to Shoaib that the boundary in the T20 games is a bit less when compared to ODIs.Else,it would not be too far when one can see Shoaib Akthar starting his run-up from out of the boundary line.

Another Icon Player Comes out With a Wonder

Well until now it was only Virender Sehwag who was found to prove his icon status by having two match winning knocks against his mane,there was one more to join when Sourav Ganguly was found to do what he was supposed to so as to prove his icon status.For he was found belting the ball to not only score a 57 ball 91 but also lead his team to four victories from 8 games till date.

It all didn't happen overnight as words go out.The man had to wait patiently until he got his rhythm right which took as many as ten overs during which the scoreboard read 73/1.And a miracle was awaiting as he along with David Hussey put on 115 runs off the last 7 overs.And a rare feat happened when the Kolkata Knight Riders when they were found to cross the 200 run mark.

Even the Deccan Chargers-unlike the Royal Challengers Bangalore were found to put in some sort of resistance when they came close to chasing the mammoth total but ended 23 short when their innings stopped at 181/7 after the end of the 20th over.Courtesy a 42-ball 71 by Venugopal Rao,whose splendid efforts have so far resulted in only his team's loss.

Same match But Different Result

With the second round already in progress,the result is somewhat the same as compared to the first stage.If not completely true,it isn't completely false either.Atleast for Kolkata Knight Riders and for Royal Challengers Bangalore none-the-less.With the first clash between the same two teams proving to be a one-sided encounter,with the Kolkata Knight Riders walking away with all credits,courtesy Brendon McCullum's 73 ball 158*.

But this time in the second edition,the Royal Challengers as they usually do not seem to do,were found to give the Kolkata Knight Riders a run for their for their money.The Royal Challengers came so close to beating the Knight Riders that the match was on until the vary last ball.But,as usual,there can be one and only one winner.That alas!turned out to be the Kolkata Knight Riders as usual.

But still some positives that I could find out from the match being that the awesome work done by the bowling department of Zaheer khan and co (not Sunil Joshi and co as I usually quote) to restrict the Knight Riders' batsmen to a partly total of just 129 from 16 overs in a rain hit match was not able to sustain by their batsmen.It looked as though the Royal Challengers were playing an individual game rather than a team sport that is supposed to be played.

The Royal Challengers had 6 wickets in hand but still were found to end up in the losing side.Not hats off to even Cameron White who blasted 15 runs off the 11th over nor to the innings of Mark Boucher-who belted 24 runs of 10 balls after taking 30 deliveries to score 26.To be noted that it is a T20 game that is involved and not a one-day international.

Likewise the Kolkata Knight Riders were found to play better cricket for they were found making use of as much as 7 batsmen.While the Royal Challengers wasted the talent of Vinay kumar and Virat kohli who were supposedly included in the team taking into account their batting ability.And at last not to forget the all round performance by the captain Sourav Ganguly who had his counterpart bowled.

Bottom To Top & From Top To Bottom

Well when the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League started,the Kolkata Knight Riders started it all with a bang by beating the Royal Challengers Bangalore by a whooping 140 runs-which is till the highest margin of victory for any team against any opposition.But,the victory streak was limited it looks.Because,after winning the forst two matches,the Kolkata Knight Riders had nothing at their end but defeat.Likewise on the other hand,the Kings XI Punjab has had a steady progress as they were found to win the rest of the games with much ease compared to the way they lost their opening encounter against Rajasthan Royals-which is famous for the Sreesanth-Harbhajan incident.

And if there was Yousuf Pathan for the Royal Challengers making news for all the good reasons,his younger brother Irfan is not too far behind as even this man was found to put up an all round performance by capturing two crucial wickets and scoring 24 runs (lets not take into account the strike rate).And much to my surprise,it was unimaginable to see Piyush Chawla belt the ball like an Indian Shahid Afridi.The tail end batsman scored a 7 ball 21 at a strike rate of 300 which included 3 hits to the fence and one huge six.

And the match was such a close encounter that it kept the audience always guessing out there for every ball that was bowled.The Kolkata Kinght Riders captain was once again a great flop as he could only manage to come out of a duck and get struck at 5.Atleast some blistering knock of 71 saw some face saving work for the Kolkata Knight Riders.And after a series of losses,it looks like the Kolkata knight riders are going the Royal Challengers and the Deccan Chargers way.

Rajasthan Royals All The Way..

The awe inspiring role by Shane Warne would not be a wrong statement as the legendary Aussie is once again proving his caliber by taking on the role of captain,a frontline bowler and a coach as well.The Australian Cricket Board would have taken a harsh decision against Warne by not giving him the captaincy despite his abilities,and later withdrawing his vice captaincy too.But,thank god that the Rajasthan Royals didn't commit the same mistake.

Warne could get most from even the new comers viz Yousuf Pathan,Swapnil Asnodkar, Ravindra Jadeja and Mahesh Rawat.If not all,three of the aforementioned could prove their worth on the cricket field.And this time the jack pot winner being Swapnil Asnodkar who belted the Knight Riders' bowling along with Yousuf Pathan who both of them notched 29 ball half centuries.A rare feat that one comes across I can say.

And this time,for a change Sourav Ganguly was found to go the Dravid way by scoring a half century as a one day batsman does.But,even that in vain as Dravid's went.If there were some batting in Yousuf Pathan,Ravindra Jadeja and Swapnil Asnodkar,the second innings was dominated by the bowling department of Rajasthan Royals which included the likes of Shane Watson,Sohail Tanvir and Trivedi,all of whom took 2 wickets each.And a trmendous support from captain-coach Shane Warne.

Well..this is the kind of motivation one needs.Full marks to u!!

Glenn McGrath-The Old War Horse

Well..it is a real waste of time,money and energy for people to once again think about Royal Challengers who are bound to disappoint almost every now and then.So,let us cast our eyes on the Delhi Daredevils who had a wonderful night out there at the Firoz Shah Kotla stadium.The first praise from me would go to Gautam Gambir,who scored a blasting 86 off 54 balls to provide Glenn McGrath the momentum to cut the heads off the Royal Challengers royally.The knock was worth the praise as the rest of the batsmen if not for Shikar Dhawan were found struggling even against a cheap bowling attack of Sunil Joshi and co..

Even Zaheer Khan-one of the leading bowlers in the tournament is not able to handle pressure and lead his side to victory.But,lets forget that.And as my last post quoted regarding the breaking of the fastest hundreds in the tournament,the same happened even in case of the best bowling performance.Sanath Jayasuriya's last night's feat of 3/14 against Kolkata Knight Riders was overtaken in just one match by Glenn McGrath who took figures of 4/29 from his alloted four overs.

The lanky Australian pacer can never be taken for granted in any form of the game I guess.And some positives for Dravid that he was somewhere close to playing a one day match where until last game was found to play a test game(even worse than that by scoring two golden ducks).But,that's a gone case altogether.An accurate bowling(even without swing,bounce and pace) can do wonders be it a test or a T20. And thats what Glenn McGrath once again proved that in the match against Royal Challengers.Kudos to U!!!

Sanath Jayasuriya:A Balanced Cricketer

Well,all of you Jayasuriya fans would be rather disappointed when one saw the batting debacle the Sri Lankan dasher was found going through since the start of the Indian Premier League.But,guys..please relax!!There was something from this great hearted man on the cricket field.The man was found taking the best bowling figures of the tournament until date.The figures of 3/14 off his alloted four overs is still the best by any bowler in the tournament till date.And not to forget the two awesome catches that were taken by this 39 year youth,followed by 10 ball 18 that included 1 six along with two hits to the fence if not something more.

But,the highlight of the day being the stump breaking delivery off Ishanth Sharma to dismiss this left handed opener,not long before he had the initial damage done.And coming to the match,it looks like the Kolkata Knight Riders are second best to the Royal Challengers Bangalore when it comes to making a mess of their cricket,and also do not deserve to be there.A fact that even I recently came to know,the Kolkata Knight Riders have so far had only 1 batsman who has scored a fifty runs of more innings.The only edge that I can see in them is that of Ishanth Sharma and Brendon McCullum.The rest viz Ricky Ponting,Sourav Ganguly etc proving nothing worth.

Some handy contributions from the Mumbai Indians include the Shaun Pollock's 2 wicket first over and Dwayne Bravo's 65* which is the best score by Mumbai Indians till date.Some cheers for Mumbai fans eh?

And even Brendon McCullum is got to leave to fulfill his national commitment.God knows as to what will happen to the fans who have had so much expectations from these Kolkata Knight Riders,unlike Royal Challengers,for whom the fans have already called it off.Great going!!!

Dhoni & Hayden Style..

Its nothing new regarding the way batsman like M.S.Dhoni, Virender Sehwag..like to finish off the match or be it getting into the landmark they were fast approaching.And Dhoni last night against Kolkata knight Riders did just that.A formal if not massive six to put an end to Kolkata Knight Riders' fate and also to seal Chennai Super Kings' fortunes.

On the other hand even Hayden was not ready to compromise either.One straight drive for six by this Australian lad took almost everything from me.I intend in giving a million pounds to that shot of his.Just kidding!!The most perfect shot I've ever come across,with his foot perfectly balanced,catching up with the length followed by perfect timing.The 13 sixes hit by Brendon McCullum in the first encounter against Royal Challengers had not even one such shot,with all those being just a slog,and not to forget the poor bowling off Dravid's party.

And Jacob Oram showed hos New Zealand team mate that Chennai Super Kings aren't Royal Challengers to have only test players like Sunil Joshi and Rahul Dravid to name a few.3/32 from 4 overs was all the most economical when it came to the T20 format.Coool Super Kings...

All Because Of Brendon McCullum!

Well the last night witnessed the inauguration of the inaugural IPL T20 competition.All was Ok..but the way the first encounter between Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Kolkata Knight Riders according to my opinion didn't go upto the mark.If not for the mind blowing innings of New Zealand wicket keeper-Brendon McCullum,none of them proved their worth on the field.

The way the others members of the Kolkata knight Riders except Brendon McCullum fought it out there,the rest viz Ganguly,Ricky Ponting and David Hussey had nothing to prove.If McCullum's innings was sidelined,the score was something nearer to the 82 posted by Bangalore Royal Challengers.Even if the 73 balls utilized by McCullum was taken into consideration,can it be said that a similar innings would have been put up by his replacement?

The body language of Ganguly,Ponting and David Hussey showed no signs of any enthusiasm.For the cheap bowling of the Royal Challengers-who were without their trump card in Dayle Steyn and Nathan Bracken,something better was expected atleast from Ganguly and Ponting.Not to forget the drop catches of Ganguly.

And coming to the second innings,the surprise being that the top scorer in the team being an abstract.The innings consisted of 19 extras,one more than the top score by Praveen Kumar-who scored 18.Rest of them being in single digits.This can happen only in a T20 game.What Say guys!!!
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