Yuvraj Singh becomes the only bowler to have two hat-tricks against his name in Twenty20 cricket
Rohit Sharma repeated his Saturday night’s blitzkrieg but Deccan Chargers failed to end up with a victory this time.
Yuvraj Singh stole the thunder from the Hyderabad batsman as Kings XI Punjab registered a thrilling win to stay alive in the tournament. The Punjab captain’s hat-trick – his second in the tournament – kept alive the semifinal hopes of his side. With 44 needed of 18 balls, Rohit went on a six-hitting spree. One of his three sixes came off an immaculate flick off of Brett Lee which was a visual delight.
The Kings XI bowlers had little clue over the line and length to bowl to him. With four needed off just four balls, Rohit, the hero so far, ended up being the tragic hero. He went for an ambitious shot off Irfan Pathan and ended up giving his wicket. Rest of his teammates failed to connect the ball properly as Kings XI registered a much needed win with the lowest margin possible.
Incidentally, with three needed off the last ball, Ryan Harris, after completing two runs, failed to turn for the crucial third that would have tied the match to leave Deccan fans exasperated. It looked like one for the Chargers till Yuvraj unleashed three magic balls – one off his second over and two off his third over – to send back Gibbs, Symonds and Venugopala Rao.
But Yuvraj was not done with the hat-trick yet. He was in his elements on the field with good bowling changes and field placements. He even fielded at his customary point position for some time. The Punjab team clearly looked the hungrier of the sides.
If Yuvraj managed a hat-trick, Ramesh Powar missed it. But the offie’s two wickets – of Adam Gilchrist and T Suman – were as crucial as Powar’s double strike in the fifth over put brakes on Hyderabad’s march.
Earlier, Kumara Sangakkara anchored the Punjab innings to perfection. His 56 off 43 balls gave his bowlers a defendable target.
With Punjab and Deccan on same points, their last round matches against Chennai Super Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore respectively will decide their fate in the tournament. The battle has just hotted up.
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