TIRUNELVELI: It’s been largely accepted that a good beginning is more than half the job done in Twenty20 cricket. Sunday’s match witnessed that with NS Chaturved and S Siddharth adding 125 runs for the first wicket in 14.2 overs, which set the platform for a big total (182/6) for VB Thiruvallur Veerans. Their opponents that day, Ruby Trichy Warriors, lost their opening wicket for 62 runs in 7.6 overs, after which the chase looked one-sided with the team posting 125 runs.
In the first match of that day, Karaikudi Kaalai collapsed to 25/5 in six overs and thereby, ended up putting merely run-a-ball score of 122 in 20 overs.The opening partnership is crucial in any format of the game, but in Tests, even in ODIs, batsmen have the cushion of being able to spend more time to play themselves in before setting the tone of the innings. The compressed nature of T20 however means teams have to absorb the pressure of an early wicket without letting it affect the momentum of the innings. Most captains and commentators agree that a good start is perhaps the single most important factor for success in 20-over cricket whether they bat first or second.
Captain of Ruby Trichy Warriors, Baba Indrajith, promoted up the order said, “Even if we had batted first, I would have opened the innings. If you see the trend of the tournament, everyone scoring big runs is an opener, not even number 3 or 4. That is an indication that the best time to play is with the new ball and I wanted to play up the order and take the game forward.
“When you are chasing 180 plus, you need to start off well in the first six overs and one batsman has to score big. It is very difficult if a settled batsman doesn’t take the game to 15th or 16th over.”
NS Chaturved, who scored 89 off 59 balls and shared a 125-run stand with his partner S Siddharth (60 off 40), feels it was the first few overs of Powerplay that gave him confidence to go on.
srinidhi@newindianexpress.com
Fans to get refund
The match between Dindigul Dragons and the Lyca Kovai Kings at the NPR College Ground, Natham, was abandoned without a ball being bowled due to heavy rain. Spectators will get refund via BookMyShow, or over the counter on August 3.