Tripathi and Markande put Sunrisers on the board in IPL 2023
Dhawan made 99 but his team couldn't give him any support until the No. 11 came out and took an extremely minimal part in a fifty-run partnership
Dhawan made 99 but his team couldn't give him any support until the No. 11 came out and took an extremely minimal part in a fifty-run partnership
Scorer: @Thilak_Rama | Commentator: @PeterDellaPenna
10.59 pm Well how about that. It's not every day that an IPL match ends in under three and a half hours these days, let alone four. Shikhar Dhawan's very special 99 not out winds up in vain. Markande takes four wickets in the field to set up a low total before Tripathi finishes it off.
Punjab Kings captain Shikhar Dhawan: "As a batting unit, we lost too many wickets back to back and couldn't put up a big total on the ground and because of that we lost the game. 175-180 would have been a reasonable score. The wicket looked quite good but it was seaming and swinging. There's lots of learning as a team for us and we're gonna go and analyze where we can get better and come back strong. I'm enjoying the captaincy and leading the side from the front. We've got a great bunch of boys, really enjoying the tournament and taking it day by day."
Sunrisers captain Aiden Markram: "I believe we have a great fan base and they proved it tonight. It was a bit of a rough start but good to get a win in front of them tonight. Not too much panic because it was just the initial phase. We keep encouraging guys to back their options and give them the freedom to do so. [Leaving out Adil Rashid and playing Mayank Markande] It's not a nice move to make but I'm super happy for Mayank tonight. He bowled incredibly well. He got his chance and certainly took it. A lot of hype about him and rightly so. Hopefully it's the start of a great competition for him. [Tripathi's innings and partnership] We all know his ability and he showed it once again tonight. He's always a couple of balls away from doing something special. That's all we keep telling him, is to express himself because he's got all the shots. He got a feel of the wicket and he made it count for us and was there at the end. Hats off to him, it was a great knock. It's very easy [for me] to do it when you've got a guy like Rahul at the other end. It's a great franchise to be a part of. It's the first win for us and hopefully we can take some momentum going forward."
Shikhar Dhawan named Player of the Match in a losing effort ahead of Rahul Tripathi. Hmmm.... "I didn't expect that I'd reach there at the end of the game but I was playing according to the situation, still keeping positive and I hope you were happy with my strike rate... Of course it was disappointing [seeing wickets keep falling] but the way we thought the wicket was going to play, it was playing differently. It was seaming and sometimes keeping low. But that's a learning process for my batting unit and that's fine. When the water is still, you can see through it. Better to be still and see the game. I'm very very grateful for 99 because I never thought I'd reach there so I'm very happy."
That's it for today's coverage. Come back tomorrow for some more IPL action. Enjoy the rest of your Easter Sunday, wherever you are following around the world. I'm Peter Della Penna. Take care!
Nandagopal: "Proof that this might be the most competitive IPL ever. No unbeaten sides after just 3 rounds of matches."
The legspinner might have been making a comeback, but he had the confidence of performing the role that Adil Rashid does
Dhawan made 99 but his team couldn't give him any support until the No. 11 came out and took an extremely minimal part in a fifty-run partnership
Both teams have had contrasting starts to IPL 2023, with PBKS winning their first two games and SRH losing theirs