Author: Bharath Ramaraj

Here are some raw numbers for IPL 2024. There have been eight scores of over 250 this season. Incidentally, before this season, only two franchises had notched up scores in excess of 250. Sunrisers Hyderabad themselves have thrice aggregated totals in excess of 250. Just a couple of days ago, Punjab Kings achieved what seemed like an improbable task as they overhauled a target of 262 set by the Kolkata Knight Riders Scratch the outside coating further, and you will notice four of the top six totals in the Powerplay overs have been recorded this season. Moreover, 814 sixes…

Sam Rainbird is an experienced left-arm pace bowler from Tasmania. He has played over a decade of professional cricket and would have come across enough power-hitters during that time. But, last year, the Tasmanian cricketer was at the receiving end of some of the most brutal range hitting seen in the recent past. It was the young Jake Fraser-MuGurk, who played a blinder, scoring the fastest List A hundred off just 29 deliveries. The sequence of the six deliveries in the second over of South Australia’s innings went as follows – 6, 6, 6, 4, 4, 6. With a bat-up…

After more than 700 hours without a win, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru emerged victorious against the formidable Sunrisers Hyderabad, and that too at SRH’s own backyard. When Jaydev Unadkat dug out a yorker for a single to complete the formalities for the game, the caverns of the mind were filled with all those fond memories of the kind of enthusiasm shown by thousands of RCB fans at their home ground. Even when RCB were losing one game after another this season, the fans outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium expressed confidence that their beloved franchise would come out on top. One such…

The starting point for any narrative surrounding Sachin Tendulkar would likely be his believe-it-or-not achievement of 100 international hundreds. So, when almost everything about Tendulkar’s career is twinkling in gold, it is next to impossible to pick that one knock which stands out like an incandescent light. But among all of Tendulkar’s trail of memorable footprints, there is largely one hidden gem: His 44 in a 50-over game at Port of Spain in 1997. It was an innings that didn’t last long, but for a brief period, Tendulkar threaded the gaps in the field akin to a visionary designer. It…

The following question perhaps best describes Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s sorry state of affairs in IPL 2024. Is there a way out of what seems like a never-ending long tunnel of darkness for the franchise? After all, they have won only one out of seven matches so far. Miracles do happen, but it seems unlikely that RCB would qualify for the playoffs this year. If RCB doesn’t progress to the next stage, the franchise would at least hope to stitch together a string of three-four wins and redeem their disastrous campaign to some extent. And the first step towards that…

The year was 2022 and England were on the verge of completing another disastrous Ashes campaign Down Under. But there was a small window for the visitors to end their barren run in Australia. The final Test of that series was played on a green seamer in Hobart, and England had the hosts reeling at 12 for 3. What transpired next was something that England wouldn’t exactly have envisaged. Travis Head essayed a game-breaking hundred to steal the match away from England’s grasp. Although Head had already accrued a hundred in that series, this was the knock which proved to…

More than a week ago, Lucknow Super Giants had once more defended a 160 plus score under the captaincy of KL Rahul. After the completion of that IPL game against Gujarat Titans, LSG’s X handle ended up releasing a short video, where their social media influencer was seen praising Rahul for his leadership qualities. He also jokingly observed that Rahul could become the next Defence Minister of India. At that moment, in a light-hearted tone, Rahul also quipped, “Tu bhi majak udayega strike rate ka yaar? (You are also making fun of the strike rate.)” On one hand, it was…

From a young age, Jos Buttler seemed to be different from his colleagues at Somerset. The essence of Buttler’s batting was his tenacity, to be able to absorb the pressure and bat deep into an innings. When Buttler was just about 20 years old, he had showcased some of his traits. In 2011, he played in a 40-over final against Surrey at Lord’s. Batting first, Somerset lost three wickets within no time. It soon became 5 for 79, 6 for 124 and 7 for 146. Buttler, however, continued to pinch singles and twos and expertly threaded the gaps with cuts…

At 104 for 4, Mumbai were in a spot of bother against Karnataka in a 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy match played in October 2019. Soon it became 169 for 6, and the South Zone side looked all set to wrap it up. But it didn’t exactly pan out that way. It is true that Karnataka eventually pipped Mumbai but only by a margin of nine runs. The reason for that narrow margin of victory was Shivam Dube. He proceeded to smack 10 sixes and seven fours in his breezy 67-ball 118. The bowler who was at the receiving end of…

Mumbai Indians versus Chennai Super Kings has always been one of the marquee clashes of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Just to put that rivalry into context, the two sides have met on 36 occasions, with CSK winning 16 and MI triumphing 20 times. Of course, they have played in summit clashes, with the highlight being the IPL 2019 final. Although CSK are placed third while MI slot in at the 7th position in the points table, there is only a difference of one win between the two teams. So, when these two sides lock horns in the cauldron of…