Law of average may have caught up with Kings XI Punjab, who after notching up five wins in a row, lost to bottom-placed and defending champions Mumbai Indians by five wickets in Mumbai three days ago.
But the George Bailey-led Punjab outfit will be keen to get back to the winning when they meet Chennai Super Kings at Barabati Stadium on Wednesday.
After six ordinary seasons, Punjab got off to rollicking start this time, trouncing Chennai by six wickets in the first match. Riding on the explosive batting feats of Glenn Maxwell and David Miller, they continued their winning run, prevailing over Rajasthan, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Bangalore.
The defeat at the hands of Mumbai, that too from a winning position, might have been a bitter pill to swallow, but it should help them shed their overconfident attitude and rekindle the hunger for success.
Explosive batting has been the key to Punjab’s phenomenal success so far. They have also proved be good chasers, winning four out of five times batting second. Maxwell and Miller have been the mainstay of their batting.
Maxwell holds the Orange Cap as the highest run-getter. He also has the distinction of playing the highest knock of 95 twice and both off 43 balls. With a strike rate of 196.02, Maxwell is second behind Chennai’s Dwayne Smith and he has so far hit 19 sixes — five less than Smith. Miller has accumulated 171 runs, including two half-centuries from six games. Stumper Wriddhiman Saha and senior pro Virender Sehwag have also made notable contributions.
Punjab’s attack may not be as formidable, but the performance of pacers Mitchell Johnson, Sandeep Sharma, Lakshmipathy Balaji, Rishi Dhawan and left-arm spinners Akshar Patel have been decent.
Chennai would be determined to carry their winning momentum. After losing the first match, MS Dhoni’s team has bounced back with six wins in on the trot. They are leading the league table with 12 points and another win will ensure them a ticket for the playoffs.
Chennai are probably the most balanced side in the fray and their performance has been most consistent. Openers Smith and Brendon McCullum have done a magnificent job, notching up one hundred-plus and three fifty-plus partnerships.
Among the leading scorers, Smith is second behind Maxwell with 335 runs from seven innings, including four fifties. McCullum is third with 281 from seven innings. With Suresh Raina also doing a fine job at No 3, Chennai’s batting is truly formidable. In bowling, pacer Mohit Sharma with 12 wickets is sharing the top spot with veteran Rajasthan spinner Prabin Tambe.
Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja closely follows the duo with 11 wickets. Jadeja lad also holds the best bowling performance of four wickets for 12 runs. With the table toppers facing each other, Wednesday’s high-voltage contest at Barabati is expected provide a lot of fireworks and exciting moments. For full coverage: www.newindianexpress.com/cricket/ipl