Street smart Krunal delivers to raise RCB’s bowling profile
Krunal Pandya's impressive bowling helped RCB secure a seven-wicket win against KKR, with three wickets for just 14 runs in the middle overs.
Kolkata: It has gone down as a wide in the scorecard, but Venkatesh Iyer might differ. Taking off his helmet since the ball went to Krunal Pandya was a reaction you would expect from any batter when spin takes over but Iyer was certainly not expecting a bouncer. Not too well directed of course, but the message was delivered. Driven home rather, if you consider how Pandya knocked Iyer over next ball by firing in flatter and quicker after pushing him on the backfoot.
This is a two-ball tactic often used by fast bowlers but not as much in white-ball cricket, and definitely not by spinners.
Pandya wants to write his own rules though, challenging batters to read him better. “I wanted to bowl quick; changes of pace were useful too. Jitesh (’keeper) knows I can do anything, bowl a wide yorker or bouncer, so he’s aware,” said Pandya after RCB’s seven-wicket win against KKR on Saturday.
Match figures of 3/29 are par for spinners at Eden Gardens, but this pitch wasn’t slow, had bounce and barely offered any turn. Pandya is never a great turner of the ball, but often overlooked is his consistency in restricting batters, which reflects in a highly creditable economy of 7.37. None of that would have been weighing heavy on KKR when Sunil Narine—not enjoying the best of starts—cleared his front leg and clubbed a 89-metre six. Two more boundaries from Ajinkya Rahane and Pandya bowling in the Powerplays already seemed a bad idea.
It probably was. But Pandya anyway is more effective in the middle overs, something KKR probably knew but didn’t know how to overcome. Three overs for three wickets, conceding just 14 runs, was Pandya’s way of bouncing back from that early setback. And he did it by cleverly changing his pace and lengths, something RCB head coach Andy Flower—who was also at LSG with Pandya—backed him to achieve on the eve of the match.
“Krunal was a significant part of our targeted players in the auction,” Flower had said. “He’s a smart and courageous cricketer and he’s got leadership experience as well. So having his nous, he’s a streetwise operator and he’s obviously got class as a left-arm spinner, let alone as an allrounder. That is comforting to have in our group and leading the way in the spin department.”
Someone had to take the reins of RCB’s spin bowling in the middle overs, given Suyash Sharma was spraying the ball and Liam Livingstone was basically part-time. And Pandya didn’t lose much time to stamp his authority by removing Rahane in the 11th over, firing back-to-back flat deliveries before allowing the KKR captain to open up his stance but with a fielder at deep backward square leg. Rasikh Salam didn’t have to move much for that catch. That’s the thing with Pandya. By varying the lengths and the speed, he tries to control the range rather than the direction.
An apt example is Rinku Singh’s dismissal. The dismissal itself wasn’t surprising — darting in the ball at 103kph and stifling him for options. To similar balls before, Rinku had tried to nudge to long-off, dab to short third man, work through midwicket, miss the flick and fail to pull off the slog sweep. That’s five balls without boundaries, something a hitter like Rinku isn’t hardwired to accept and move on. So out came another pull that didn’t connect at all, and Pandya had his third of the match to complete a fascinating transformation.
It couldn’t have been easy, on that pitch and in that din. But Pandya has got his priorities clear.
“Sometimes when you play in front of so much of crowd, you have to narrow down your focus, right?” said Pandya. “So again, when I came in (for my) second over, I made a very conscious effort to just narrow down my focus, where I wanted to bowl, and if I (had) to get hit, I’ll get hit on a good ball. So that was the thought process, and (I am) glad that I was able to deliver.”
