Cricket analysts and commentators Stuart Broad and Sanjay Manjrekar discussed their observations from the match between the Lucknow Super Giants and Punjab Kings in an exclusive interview on Star Sports’ Cricket Live Show. Speaking specifically about Ruturaj Gaikwad, the captain of the Chennai Super Kings, who will be playing today against the Delhi Capitals, Sanjay Manjrekar discusses Nicholas Pooran’s extremely mature innings. Krunal Pandya’s batting and his position as a crucial finisher for the Lucknow Super Giants delighted Stuart Broad. Sanjay and Stuart both praised Mayank Yadav for his exceptional and precise bowling while bowling at a speed of more than 150 km/h against the Punjab Kings.
Speaking exclusively to Star Sports’ Cricket Live Show, former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar discussed Nicholas Pooran’s batting and said, “People have tried this before and sometimes they’ve been disappointed, so somewhere you know people find comfort in the Pollards of the game, where down the order is better, or Liam Livingstone on occasion; same with Pooran as well, but in the match he was actually trying to play like Shikhar Dhawan, trying to not anchor the inning but play responsibly and make sure that too many wickets are lost.”
Even if these men are attempting to play responsibly by not losing too many wickets, their 200-run strike rate is still astounding. We witnessed some excellent batting performances today, but there was one player who really upended the entire system: Shikhar. He also managed to hit 150 while attempting to steady the ship.
Speaking about the pace and rookie Mayank Yadav, Manjrekar remarked, “Not just 150; I remember Umesh Yadav when he bowled a 150 delivery at the Wankhede Stadium and I got him in the commentary box; we have been really proud.” He bowled his third ball, number 156, which is the quickest ball in the IPL. He may elaborate on it for us. The third ball reached 150 while someone was just entering and playing in his debut IPL match. Therefore, he doesn’t actually have to exert much effort to bowl that swiftly.
Indeed, I’m grinning too,” Broad remarked, expressing his gratitude for Mayank Yadav.
Whenever a new fast bowler with exceptional speed, aggression, and qualities emerges on the scene, it truly amazes me. His run-up is really calm and builds pace all the way through. At the crease, he is balanced. His line was excellent today, in my opinion. I believe that if you give width at that rate of bowling at 156, you just vanish. They were attempting to give themselves space to open up the offside, but he was squeezing them at the batters and over the stumps. Arriving there, he was able to attract top players and outpace them in speed. It was absolutely amazing, as far as IPL debuts go. incredibly unique.
In the context, Manjrekar continued, “And if you remember Umran Malik, another fast bowler that we have, he just struggled with lines occasionally and you got the idea that he couldn’t control his line every time he went full. This man possessed a high degree of intelligence. He kept things short, which is a little easier to handle line-wise, until Shikhar Dhawan started playing in behind the square. Jonny Bairstow is also a skilled bowler; after making one outstanding stroke at the off, he continued to go closer. Really, though, social media is going to be really active today. Following the Pakistani Rahul Tendi Express, we discovered the Delhi Express.
“You should play different roles in the IPL, having batted at four or five, but actually if you can be a player that a team can rely on down at six or seven to finish innings off when you have the quality of Quinton de Kock at the top of the order, KL Rahul, and you have Marcus Stoinis, if you can be that player that can find the boundary in those last three overs and can be relied upon for that, that makes you a very valuable player to have and he did that really well and ultimately you win the game by 21 runs, that 40 that comes in the final four overs, that proves crucial,” said Broad.
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Manjrekar said about Ruturaj Gaikwad and Rishabh Pant during the Chennai Super Kings vs. Delhi Capitals match, “Ruturaj has had some great times very close to him for the last three-four years and so.” Ruturaj Gaikwad was pleased with his takeover and the almost flawless transfer that resulted in two victories. The best part was when his name was called during the first game. The roar and kind of reception that Chennai showed showed that they not only loved Mahendra Singh Dhoni but also the franchise and team, as Ruturaj Gaikwad was welcomed with the same warmth as MS Dhoni.
Speaking about Rishabh Pant in more detail, Manjrekar stated, “Having said that, I’m just waiting to see Rishabh Pant play one of those shots you know we have seen him right he played in England, where he just sort of loses balance and gets into a shape that you know can’t understand never balanced but the ball has gone in the second tier of the stand.” I believe Rishabh Pant will fully return to the game when he reaches that point since he is a very physical batter and his success has relied on his physical preparation. Right now, you can see that his hitting is a bit measured, but that’s all I’m looking forward to.