COMING BACK ON TRACK WITH A BANG AND ALL THAT...

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So we’re back on track with a bang! A win just feels so motivating for the rest of the games that lie ahead. The decision to stick with more or less the same playing XI that lost against SRH came good second time around (Curran in for Johnson being the only change), but the team combination from that game was never an issue. It was the tactics that didn’t work in the last game, which DK set right in the convincing 71 run win against DD.

Robbie is striking the ball brilliantly – Uthappa showed shades of his brilliant form in the 2014 season, the only difference is, he seems to be striking the ball better than he ever did. Also, the signs are increasingly telling that he should remain at number 3, and Narine should continue opening the batting with Lynn. The best part about Robbie’s knock is that he didn’t allow the run rate to fall after Narine’s early exit. It was counter attacking at its absolute best.

Lynn is still struggling – He’s getting the runs in front of his name alright, but the way he is going about getting those runs still remains dicy. Yes, Lynn did strike the ball hard yesterday – on one occasion almost taking Boult with the ball to the boundary, but why does he still look like he is being made to go through a torture to score his runs? The strapping around his bicep is clearly restricting him, though I understand it is an important precautionary measure for our big Aussie. 31 from 29 balls with 16 dot balls faced, is not the ideal innings by an opener. I hope he comes good in the next game.

Our Caribbean heroes in Narine and Russel – Narine with the ball and Russel with the bat – if these two fire, let’s just say that we will win 90 percent of our games going forward. Narine is increasingly looking like the Narine we all know, and Dre Russ is just tonking those sixes out of the park at will. 42 off 11 was the defining knock of the game for me. If Rana was the stabilizer, Dre Russ was the booster shot! My big concern still remains – what if Narine or Russel or both don’t fire?

Mavi is fast – It was heartening to see Mavi bowl like the way he did, and getting our ex-skipper out bowled was the icing on the cake for him. Also, DKs decision to bowl him up front paid dividends, and I hope he sticks with him going forward. Curran and Johnson look like they can play the interchangeable roles.  

DKs composure – A smiling captain, to top of his calmness and composure on the field is such a joy to see. DK has had a mixed bag as far as captaincy is concerned, but you cannot help but believe that he is slowly getting a grip over his team. He is also chipping in with the runs, which is good to see. We need him to score a nice quick-fire 50 now.