Ahmedabad: In a tournament dominated by power-hitters, Vijaykumar Vyshak showed how a bowler can change the course of a game as an Impact Player. At a time when Gujarat Titans threatened to chase down 244 on Tuesday evening in Ahmedabad, Punjab Kings brought him in as an Impact Player after the 14th over. The pacer proved how clear planning could make a difference. His figures of 0/28 in three overs don’t do justice to the impact he had on the game.
Vyshak bowled full, fast and wide outside the off-stump to left-handed Sherfaine Rutherford who was in prime striking form against the other frontline Punjab Kings bowlers. The speedster from Karnataka conceded five wides but clearly took the Titans’ batters by surprise. His first two overs went only for 10 runs. By the time Titans could figure him out in his third over, which was the 19th of the innings, the target was beyond reach.
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Vyshak’s introduction was carefully thought out. In the 11 IPL matches he played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the previous two seasons, he went at an economy rate of 10 runs per over. But he played as a frontline pacer. For someone who is in the scheme of things for national selectors, the assumption would have been that he started with more conventional line and length. Instead, he speared in just wide yorkers. There were no changes.
Kings’ middle-order batter Shashank Singh lauded the pacer for his execution. Asked if the Karnataka pacer’s introduction was delayed a little, Shashank said, “I feel that was the right time to get Vyshak in. The way he bowled, we usually plan these things in our bowling meeting. Planning is one thing but execution is different. The way he executed the plan was commendable. Those were the hard overs. The balls he was bowling, it’s very difficult. It’s easy on TV to see or maybe as a filter to see. But when the ball is a bit wet, it’s difficult to bowl those yorkers. And he did his job to perfection. Kudos to him.”
Titans’ left-arm spinner Sai Kishore echoed Shashank’s views on execution. “In the last five overs, Vyshak bowled brilliantly. All credit to him for the way he executed his yorkers,” Kishore said.
Kings and Vyshak have shown that one doesn’t need to try out too many things to make an impact in a T20 game. But they would also know that they have exposed their weapon to the other teams. “To be fair, I think those balls could have been scored off. It’s very easy for me to say, but we could have tried to hit more boundaries than just looking for sixes. That is the learning going forward,” Kishore said.
It’s up to Vyshak how he adapts here on and carries on making the same impact.
