This concludes the opening match of the doublehaeder for today. Head to the second game of the day, where the San Francisco Unicorns will bowl first against the MI New York. Take care, and goodbye.
Faf du Plessis: "Nice start, Noor did really good with the ball on a tricky pitch. You always feel like you need to get more runs, more runs, more runs on the scoreboard. But it was a little bit trickier today. I thought our bowling was really good. We made it a little harder for the guys to hit us off difficult. So, definitely improvement from the previous game. I think scratching our way to a total. It's on tricky surfaces. In T20 Cricket, you expect when you just come in and hit sixes all the time. It is quite a small venue, but still good batsmanship, guys like Devon Conway showing that the good proper cricket shots are still the way to go on wickets like this. So that's really good to see."
Most Valuable Player, Noor Ahmad: "Everywhere I go, I just try to keep it simple for myself and go with the basic, and that's how it works for me. Here, the length is very important and just try to hit the right area, use the length well and it worked for me. I mean the environment is very good, off the field and on the field, and everyone gives their best, so I'm enjoying it here."
Sunil Narine: "We did well to keep them down to that score. The wicket was decent. We could have probably done a little better, trying to break down the game into about 10 or 15 runs. But it was a chaseable total. We just need to be positive and smart at the same time. You just have to go there and assess the conditions. And we have to carry the game deep. I think within 10 overs, it was tough. So somebody from the top four has to show responsibility, lead together, and try to not lose wickets in clusters. (Three West Indies players) Hopefully, they'll be here and ready for the next game. Quality batters, that's what we need. And hopefully we can continue bowling the way we are bowling, and let the batters do the job after."
5:35 pm The Knight Riders were in hot water from the start, losing Fletcher in just the second over. Their struggles continued throughout the innings with the bat. Chand got incredibly lucky on his very first ball, edging it without any appeals from the fielders. Hales started to find his rhythm, smashing two huge sixes in a row, but then chipped a catch to mid-off. Wiig then really turned the tide in the middle overs, snaring two crucial wickets, including the big one of Hales. After the strategic timeout, the Knight Riders completely fell apart. Mitchell dismissed Chand, and then Noor Ahmad delivered a devastating double blow, sending both Russell and Narine back to the pavilion in the same over. Schadly van Schalkwyk was the top scorer for the Knight Riders, scoring 27 runs off 21 balls, which highlights their batting woes. Noor Ahmad was the star with the ball, taking an impressive four wickets for just 25 runs. Milne and Wiig also chipped in with two wickets each.
Texas Super Kings won by 57 runs
T Sangha b Milne 1 (2b 0x4 0x6) SR: 50
END OF OVER:17 | 11 Runs 1 Wkt | LAKR: 124/9 (58 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 7.29, RRR: 19.33)
- Ali Khan16 (13b)
- Tanveer Sangha1 (1b)
- Zia-ul-Haq3-0-28-1
- Adam Milne3-0-8-1
SC van Schalkwyk c †Conway b Zia-ul-Haq 27 (21b 2x4 2x6) SR: 128.57
Zia-Ul-Haq returns
END OF OVER:16 | 3 Runs | LAKR: 113/8 (69 runs required from 24 balls, RR: 7.06, RRR: 17.25)
- Shadley van Schalkwyk27 (20b)
- Ali Khan6 (9b)
- Adam Milne3-0-8-1
- Noor Ahmad4-0-25-4
Strategic Timeout