Right that’s all from me, as we’ve got another match to cover. It was good to see Eoin Morgan get some runs and really his innings was the difference. It’s a good result for the competition overall, I guess, as it keeps qualification for the play-offs a more open race. Cheers for reading, bye!
Sunrisers win by seven runs
20 overs: Royals 194-7 (Morris 34, Binny 3) 9 needed Morris cuts for a single and that’s it!
19.5 overs: Royals 193-7 (Morris 33, Binny 3) 9 needed It’s in the blockhole and hit very hard, very sweetly, down the ground for four.
19.4 overs: Royals 189-7 (Morris 29, Binny 3) 13 needed Flicked round the corner for two. Two sixes needed to take it to a super over.
19.3 overs: Royals 187-7 (Morris 27, Binny 3) 15 needed Another full-toss, off the splice of the bat and down to long-on for one.
19.2 overs: Royals 186-7 (Morris 27, Binny 2) 16 needed Wide and full, guided out to point for a single.
Updated
19.1 overs: Royals 185-7 (Morris 26, Binny 2) 17 needed Binny is on strike to Kumar. It’s a low full-toss and Binny clumps it straight for one.
19th over: Royals 184-7 (Morris 26, Binny 1) target 202 No one has told Chris Morris that this is over, I guess. Two length balls to begin the over and they’re both dispatched over wide mid-on for six, the first just about evading Morgan’s despairing dive. Praveen comes round the wicket and it’s hooked square for six more! A yorker dug out and they run an excellent two. Another boundary here and this might well get interesting. Single down the ground to Warner at long-on and Binny, finally, gets to face his first ball. One from it it long-off, means 18 are needed from the last over. It’s a tall ask, but we’ll go ball-by-ball, because why not?
18th over: Royals 162-7 (Morris 5, Binny 0) target 202 Is there anything Ravi Bopara can’t do? He’s involved again to get rid of the last vestige of a chance that the Royals had. Samson whips the next ball, a yorker, straight back over the bowler’s head for six. Remarkable bat speed that. And again, a similar ball but over mid-wicket this time! He tries to make it three in three, but loses his stumps. Two sixes and two wickets in the first four balls, then Morris flicks his first ball over his own shoulder for four. A scoop into the on-side and it’s W-6-6-W-4-1.
Wicket! Samson b B Kumar 21
Slightly slower, full and outside off. Samson looks to smash the leather off it but it takes an inside edge and the stumps are rearranged.
Wicket! Faulkner c Bopara b B Kumar
A low full-toss, but Faulkner doesn’t get hold of it. The ball comes off the bottom end of the bat and is taken easily at long-on.
17th over: Royals 145-5 (Samson 9, Faulkner 30) target 202 In the slot from Bopara and Samson lifts him perfectly over mid-on for six. Ravi hits back with a slower ball that takes the edge, but it loops safely down to third man for two. My sometime-colleague Dileep Premchandran likened Samson to Sehwag the other day in the way that he keeps his head so still. That’s why Dileep’s one of the best out there. Two singles to finish the over.
16th over: Royals 135-5 (Samson 2, Faulkner 29) target 202 Henriques is back and Faulkner smashes a pull, all muscle, out to deep mid-wicket, where the fielder lets it slip under him for four. Two balls later another big swing and a top-edge over the keeper for four more. The bowler comes back with three good slower balls and that’s nine from the over, but they’ve slipped further behind the asking rate. 16.75, that, now.
15th over: Royals 126-5 (Samson 1, Faulkner 21) target 202 Smith pulls Bopara’s first ball hard for four to mid-on, but goes the next ball. Bopara justifies his selection ahead of Steyn! A pot pourri of ones and twos makes nine from the over. Samson the new guy.
Wicket! Smith b Bopara 68
Ravi the destroyer does it! Smith backs away and has a swish, but the ball keeps a touch low and clatters into the stumps!
14th over: Royals 117-4 (Smith 64, Faulkner 18) target 202 Praveen Kumar returns. They could probably do with knocking one of these two over, given the touch that Steve Smith is in. Five from the first four balls of this over and I was just getting ready to say how useful that is, then Smith drives with wonderful timing past the bowler, past Warner and away for four to long-off. One more makes 10 off the over.
13th over: Royals 107-4 (Smith 58, Faulkner 15) target 202 The fans are genuinely chanting the name of a soft drink sponsor now. I’ve just cracked open a coke in protest. Leg-spin again and Karn’s over-pitched first ball is creamed back over his head by Smith for six. That’s 50 for him. Six more four balls later, identical to the first. This is an excellent innings, but he’s ploughing a lone furrow.
12th over: Royals 93-4 (Smith 45, Faulkner14) target 202 Ishant comes back and Ojha makes an outstanding stop when Smith flicks round the corner. A low full-toss second ball to Faulkner and he middles his paddled sweep over square-leg deep out the ground, over that low stand. The batsmen exchange singles, then Faulkner slogs the ugliest six you’ll ever see from a bumper, over mid-wicket.
11th over: Royals 77-4 (Smith 44, Faulkner 0) target 202 If they can do that every over then the Royals will be home and dry; 13.4 an over needed. Four more to Smith as he cuts a short, wide one from Karn with the turn. The bowler then appeals, ludicrously, for a caught & bowled against Hooda despite the batsman having kicked it back to him from well outside off. No matter as Hooda becomes the latest man to go trying to cut loose with the last ball.
Wicket! Hooda c B Kurma b K Sharma 7
Hooda looks to cut loose and it proves his downfall. His shot over extra cover, er, doesn’t get over extra cover and Bhuvi comes in from the boundary to take the catch above his head.
10th over: Royals 68-3 (Smith 37, Hooda 5) target 202 Back-to-back fours to Smith – the first pushed from wide outside off to the point fence and the second flicked off the pads to backward square. Two balls later, Henriques drops short and Smith stands and delivers a perfect pull, behind square again and away for four again. A misfield at long-on by Ishant brings two more, then Smith steps a long way across to off and knocks a single to fine-leg.
9th over: Royals 53-3 (Smith 22, Hooda 5) target 202 With 155 needed from 72 balls, I reckon Warner could get me on for an over or two here. Instead it’s Ravi Bopara. Two singles, then Hooda clips to deep mid-on and they run two, bringing up the team 50, around five overs too late.
8th over: Royals 47-3 (Smith 20, Hooda 1) target 202 Bloody hell, Henriques is described as “fast medium”. Curtley Ambrose would spit feathers if watching this competition wasn’t so clearly beneath the great man. Still, Karun Nair doesn’t know what pace he is either as he goes through with a shot too early and it brings his inevitable downfall. A couple of singles and a wide preceded the wicket, by the way. Nair took up 10 balls for those four runs, by the way, which is pretty piss-poor in a chase of 200+. One into the on-side gets Hooda off the mark.
Wicket! Nair c Ojha b Henriques 4
Nair is, as I said, out to a big shot. He gives the bowler the charge, looks to swish it into the stands at mid-wicket, but gets a big top-edge that the keeper takes coolly. This one’s over.
7th over: Royals 42-2 (Smith 18, Nair 3) target 202 William Shatner should be an IPL announcer, used only when Karn Sharma is bowling. Karn Sharma is bowling and, even before he starts, the required rate is pushing 12. Leg-spin isn’t going to be easy to hit, as Tambe showed earlier. Well, until Morgan went to work on him anyway. Three singles, a two and a leg-bye (from a hopelessly optimistic LBW shout) push that required rate beyond 12.
6th over: Royals 36-2 (Smith 16, Nair 0) target 202 I’m going to resist the temptation to slag of Ishant again, after the way his last over ended. In fact this is very nice stuff, only a single to Smith from the first five balls and with Nair on nought from four he’s under a bit of pressure. Such is the nature of T20. Great over, as he can’t get the final ball away either. He’ll be out to a big shot soon.
5th over: Royals 35-2 (Smith 15, Nair 0) target 202 Praveen again, another LBW shout – against Smith this time – but again it’s swinging down leg. Second ball and it’s straighter, into the pads again but again not out, albeit on height this time. This is really nice bowling and he finds Smith’s edge, but there’s no slip and it goes low, down to third man for four. He’s been unlucky and it’s almost no surprise that Smith is then dropped by Henriques, running round to take a low catch at deep square-leg as the batsman flicks it aerially from ankle-height.
4th over: Royals 30-2 (Smith 10, Nair 0) target 202 Cap’n Warner gets generous, bringing Ishant Sharma into the attack. His first ball is straight and full and timed perfectly back past him for four, with the bowler collapsing like Jerome Boateng in his follow through. Second ball and again he falls over, this time trying to field off his own bowling. He really is hilarious to watch. Wide now and Smith drives through cover to the boundary again. Is it throwing a match if you pick Ishant Sharma? I don’t know, but of course he gets a wicket now.
Wicket! Watson c P Kumar b I Sharma 12
A length ball, the kind that Watson might normally whack into the stands over mid-on, is instead chipped straight to the man in that very position.
3rd over: Royals 21-1 (Smith 1, Watson 12) target 202 Smith is a lucky man as he gets a lofted straight drive all wrong, the ball coming off the splice of the bat, looping up over the bowler’s head and landing just short of Wanrer running round. Should have been taken, really. The batsmen take a single instead and Watson rocks back and cuts the very next ball behind point for four. Full, very wide next and Watson edges high and wide, just evading the Collingwood-esque leap of Dhawan at slip and down to third man for four more.
2nd over: Royals 12-1 (Smith 0, Watson 4) target 202 Steve Smith is the new man; Praveen Kumar the bowler. Half a shout for LBW second ball but it was swinging a long long way down leg. Three dots, all inswingers, are a good start but the fourth is too straight and gets clipped square off the crease for four. The swing was the bowler’s weakness there. Another LBW shout final ball, but it’s hit the inside edge and may have been too high too.
1st over: Royals 8-1 (Smith 0, Watson 0) target 202 It’ll be Bhuvi Kumar to open to Rahane. This is a tough old chase, obviously, and it looks like the Sunrisers may have come up with a clever one here, leaving out Steyn and Boult and thus not letting the ball come off the bat with too much pace. Short and wide, third ball, from Kumar and Rahane nails his cut through point for four. A leading edge next up though, that lands short of the cover fielder. Kumar pushes his length up but again it’s too wide and Rahane plays a classical cover drive for four more. The next ball brings the wicket though; a touch straighter and that’s the perfect line.
Wicket! Rahane c Ojha b B Kumar 8
A full outswinger, Rahane just pushes at it and the catch floats through to the keeper diving to his right.
The state of Kevin Pietersen’s hair.
Brilliant from Morgan, to set up a big total after the openers’ good work looked like it might go to waste. Back shortly, I’m off for a sandwich.
End of innings
20th over: Sunrisers 201-4 (Bopara 17, Ojha 8) It’s going to take a fine over from Morris to stop the Sunrisers from getting 200 here. His first ball is a full-toss, but Bopara can only mistime it down to long-on for one. Another single, flicked off the pads by Ojha, then Morris sends down a floaty wide outside off. It’s hard for the bowlers to grip the ball out there in very high, sweaty temperatures. One more clubbed down to long-on, then a dot. One more from the fifth ball brings up the 200, leaving Bopara on strike for the final ball and he whips a yorker to square-leg for a single.
19th over: Sunrisers 195-4 (Bopara 14, Ojha 6) That was magnificent from Morgan, who was under pressure for his place from Kane Williamson. Bopara gets a lucky boundary to wide long-off here as his shot bobbles over the sliding Steve Smith. The next ball is a full-toss that Ravi crunches back at the bowler and catches him on the wrist as Faulkner took evasive action. Four more to Ojha, a nice late cut down to backward point, and again the bobble takes it past the diving fielder.
Eoin Morgan's IPL season before today: 65 runs off 70 balls Eoin Morgan today: 63 runs off 28 balls
— Alt Cricket (@AltCricket) May 7, 2015
18th over: Sunrisers 184-4 (Bopara 9, Ojha 1) Morgan is looking pretty good here. He hammers Watson’s first two balls to Binny at cover, but is able to get two runs from each, then he hits a full one straight back down the ground for his fifth six. That’s the fun over though, as he tries to do the same again but fails. Watson drops too short to Bopara, who can take the lead now, and the batsman pulls it behind square for three.
Wicket! Morgan c Smith b Watson 63
Wide and full, Morgan looks to go over long-off but he toe-ends it and Smith swallows the catch.
17th over: Sunrisers 170-3 (Bopara 6, Morgan 53) Wide from Morris and Morgan takes advantage of Hooda’s misfield at point, putting it hard, between his legs (grow up) and away for four. “Hooda fielder,” says the commentator four times, searching desperately for a pun that’s eluding him, like Princess Peach at the end of a Super Mario level. A wide, then a couple, then Morgan runs down the track to one back of a length and launches a huge shot straight for six. Four to fine-leg as Morris goes too full and too leg-side and that’s a 23-ball 50 for Morgan.
16th over: Sunrisers 151-3 (Bopara 5, Morgan 36) The final over from Tambe then. Morgan hits a lovely, wristy six into the stands over square-leg, then gets two, well run, to mid-off. A fantastic hard drive through the same region brings Morgan four, hitting the wrong’un with the spin. This is a cracking over for the Sunrisers, as Morgan hits the final ball straight down the ground for another six. Poor Pravin Tambe’s figures. They end up being 1-32.
Updated
15th over: Sunrisers 133-3 (Bopara 5, Morgan 18) Watson holds the excellent Tambe back, bringing Faulkner on. He removes Dhawan second ball, which means we have an all-England partnership! In limited overs cricket! Against an Australian bowler! Bopara gets a life as he edges a cover drive through the slips and away for four.
Updated
Wicket! Dhawan b Faulkner 54
It’s full and straight-ish, and Dhawan inexplicably looks to run it off the face down the third man, reverse sweeping. Instead he runs it off the inside edge, into the bottom of his stumps.
Updated
14th over: Sunrisers 126-2 (Dhawan 54, Morgan 16) Hooda again and Dhawan top-edges a reverse sweep down to long-leg, where it’s chased down brilliantly by Tambe to keep them to two. That’s how you do it, Stuart Binny, and Tambe is 43 years old. One, then two, then a wide, then Dhawan brings up a 33-ball half-century with a top-edged sweep that sails far further than it had any right to, over sqaure-leg for six. Shorter next and Dhawan reverse-pulls round the corner for four.
13th over: Sunrisers 109-2 (Dhawan 41, Morgan 13) “Come on everybody,” says the man on the PA with moderate enthusiasm and what sounds like a south London accent, “Wat-son! Wat-son! Wat-son!” Even the IPL crowd don’t seem enthused by that, as the captain returns to bowl. The Royals have done very well in the last few overs, bringing the run-rate down and having not conceded a boundary for 14 balls at the start of the over. Morgan is beaten all ends up by a good bouncer, but then full and wide and the England man lifts it over cover for four. So 18 balls it was without a boundary, but that one brings up the hundred. Six next up, in the slot and slotted over long-off.
12th over: Sunrisers 96-2 (Dhawan 39, Morgan 2) Hooda returns and Dhawan plays a cute little reverse sweep for one. Tom Moody says that Warner suffered from some minor back spasms and is being treated for it. A single apiece, then a leg-bye, before Dhawan misses out on a rank full-toss last balls, only managing to knock it out to deep extra cover.
11th over: Sunrisers 91-2 (Dhawan 36, Morgan 1) Nought for 11 so far from Tambe and his variety is too good for Henriques who, after Dhawan took a single, was clean bowled looking to slog. Three from the over.
Wicket! Henriques b Tambe 20
As straightforward as they come: Henriques backs away and gazes towards the stand at extra cover. He doesn’t hit the ball though and a slightly quicker one clatters into the top of middle.
10th over: Sunrisers 88-1 (Dhawan 34, Henriques 20) Faulkner back into the attack. His first ball is short, pulled hard to mid-on and it beats the sluggish chase of Stuart Binny to the fence. A pair of singles, then another pull off a short one for four to mid-wicket. It’s closer to Binny this time, but once again the fielder appears to be moving in slow motion. Really, both of those boundaries should have been stopped and would have been by a fielder more athletic. Say, Dwayne Leverock, or an inanimate carbon rod.
9th over: Sunrisers 76-1 (Dhawan 33, Henriques 9) A bit of cat-and-mouse here as the first two balls see Henriques back away to leg and try to free his arms, but Tambe follows him with quicker, flatter ones that tuck him up. A single off the third ball, then Tambe drops a touch short and gets swept over mid-wicket for the first six of the day by Dhawan. Couple of singles follow and this has been a decent start for the Sunrisers again. The questions remain over their middle order and bowling though.
8th over: Sunrisers 67-1 (Dhawan 26, Henriques 7) Kulkarni returns and he needs to adjust his line from the last over and bowl a tighter one, with Dhawan on strike. No sooner have I written that than he sends down a slow bouncer on off-stump, which gets thumped over mid-wicket for four. Beats the bat from back of a length as Dhawan gets a bit too cute trying to run it down to third man, then a fuller one goes past the attempted straight drive. The fifth ball is fuller still, but it’s slow enough that Dhawan has time to back away to leg and smash it through cover for four.
7th over: Sunrisers 58-1 (Dhawan 18, Henriques 7) The recalled Pravin Tambe is into the attack now, to throw down some leg-spin. Four dots in a row, the fourth of which is brilliantly fielded on the bounce by a diving Rahane at mid-off on the edge of the circle, saving four. Interesting, this: he’s actually releasing the ball from behind the stumps. Decent move, I guess, as the remaining two balls yield just a single apiece.
6th over: Sunrisers 56-1 (Dhawan 17, Henriques 6) Henriques says a friendly hello in an unfriendly way to the new bowler, James Faulkner, with a slash over point for four. A single, and a push to cover for two by Dhawan, but that’s ultimately decent bowling to the left-hander, full and preventing him from freeing his arms. Time for one of those timeout things.
5th over: Sunrisers 49-1 (Dhawan 15, Henriques 1) Cap’n Watto brings himself on and gives Warner width with the first two balls and disappears for eight runs, the first four of which were deftly run down to third man to take Warner to 400 for the season, the second four of which were cut high and hard over backward point. A better line from Watson third ball though and that’s enough to do for Warner. Another Aussie replaces him, Moises Henriques, and the new batsman looks to be struggling a touch on a two-paced wicket, in which the ball seems to stick a touch. Single to square-leg gets him off a blob, but that’s a good comeback by Watto.
Wicket! Warner c Samson b Watson 24
Looking for a third four in a row, Warner cuts at one that’s bowled too straight for the shot and feathers a thin edge through to the keeper.
4th over: Sunrisers 40-0 (Dhawan 15, Warner 16) Warner looks to be in a little discomfort here and the trainer is on to give him a back rub. Isa Guha, a shining light in the IPL commentary team, reckons he might have overextended himself looking to smack the leather of the thing and strained a muscle. Morris continues and it’s tight stuff, tucking the left-hander up and hitting the bat high up, which denies Warner the width he so loves. Warner pulls to deep mid-on for a couple, then steps back and flat-bats the fourth ball of the over back past the bowler for four with a grimace. Morris then gets his yorker all wrong and sends a big full toss miles down the leg-side and away for five wides. A quick single from the final ball.
3rd over: Sunrisers 28-0 (Dhawan 15, Warner 9) The Hooda experiment is over; here’s Kulkarni. Far too wide first up, but Dhawan’s slash can only pick out the man at cover. Again second up and he gets a thick outside edge up and over slip for four. A single brings Warner on strike and Kulkarni continues to go full and wide, slanting it across the left-handers. Risky, that. Warner lifts over point for another single, then Dhawan drives off the back foot through extra cover for his third boundary.
2nd over: Sunrisers 18-0 (Dhawan 6, Warner 8) Yeah, spin wasn’t a great idea first up, so here comes Chris Morris. His brass eye is off first up and it flicks Dhawan’s thigh pad on its way down to long-leg for four leg-byes. Morris is in for Southee today, which seems like an odd one to me purely because the former isn’t that good. A mistimed cut that bounces over point gives Dhawan one more and, though Warner goes hard at the bowler, he’s not getting it away and the over finishes with four dots.
1st over: Sunrisers 13-0 (Dhawan 5, Warner 8) Deepak Hooda is opening the bowling with his off-spin. Dhawan opens his account second ball by driving very nicely, with the spin and through extra cover for four. A nurdle to mid-on brings Warner on strike and he too gets underway with a second-ball boundary through extra cover, this time stepping down to the pitch of the ball and thrashing it. A cut bobbles past Rahane at point and races away for four more.
Here we go...
I’ve just realised that the Sunrisers have no Steyn and no Boult on what is expected to be a seaming wicket. Er, good luck with that one, guys.
Aaaaand the teams
Once again, Dale Steyn has been dropped for Ravi Bopara. Wheeey!
Rajasthan Royals: AM Rahane, SR Watson*, SPD Smith, KK Nair, SV Samson†, STR Binny, JP Faulkner, CH Morris, DJ Hooda, DS Kulkarni, PV Tambe
Sunrisers Hyderabad: S Dhawan, DA Warner*, MC Henriques, EJG Morgan, RS Bopara, NV Ojha†, GH Vihari, KV Sharma, P Kumar, B Kumar, I Sharma
The toss
Shane Watson wins it and decides that his team (The Royals, for those of you not keeping track) will bowl first.
Preamble
Morning folks. We’re into the business end now and, such has been the arbitrary unpredictable nature of results so far, we’re still not that much closer to knowing who’s any good or not than we were when this whole crazy business started; OK the Super Kings are there now and Kings XI are atrocious, but just three points separate third from seventh.
The Royals (royaaaaals) can go some way to correcting that today, as they will go top and near enough secure their place in the top four with a win over said seventh-placed side today. The nominal away side, on the other hand, have spluttered into life sporadically, but only when David Warner and Shikar Dhawan fire. We saw in their match against the Knight Riders what happens when the top order fails.
We might be in for a rare treat today. The wicket in Mumbai is probably the greenest in the tournament, so it could be that both Dale Steyn and Trent Boult play for the Sunrisers today. If only the former hadn’t underwhelmed so far, eh?
Toss and team news when I have it, ahead of the 11.30am BST/4pm local time start. Here’s some light entertainment in the meantime, for you to read while I prepare the second OBO. Happy election day, UK readers!
Dan will be here shortly. Whilst you wait, here are the latest words to fall out of the mouth of Kevin Pietersen, who gave up his place with the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the beginning of this IPL season to return to county cricket in England.
Kevin Pietersen has warned one of the most important tasks for Andrew Strauss, should he be made the England and Wales Cricket Board’s new director, is to restore English cricket to its public after a “treacherous 15 months”.
Strauss, the former Test captain whose working relationship with Pietersenreached a low ebb during the vexed summer of 2012, will doubtless face a series of tough and high-profile decisions if he does rejoin the ECB payroll this summer. One of them may be whether to bring back Pietersen for a second time after his axing by the ECB following the 2013-14 Ashes whitewash for Alastair Cook’s team.
Pietersen, who will be 35 by the time this summer’s rematch with Australia gets under way, has been given fresh hope of a recall after the incoming ECB chairman,Colin Graves, hinted that runs in county cricket may yet provide him with a pathway back to the Test arena. In those circumstances, it will be essential that Strauss and Pietersen are seeing eye to eye again.
