Kolkata Knight Riders fast bowler Pat Cummins has had a difficult start to his IPL 2020 campaign as the heavy price tag seemed like a heavy burden. Cummins targetted the short deliveries which didn’t work well for him as Hardik Pandya slapped one over mid-wicket in the 17th over.
Put to bat first by Dinesh Karthik, Mumbai took the attack to the opposition despite losing Quinton de Kock early. Young Shivam Mavi removed the South African early to draw the first blood. But since then, it was a one-way traffic at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium.
The Mumbai duo put everything out of the park especially Rohit. The India opener looked in no mood to stop as he dispatched anything short of a length. Sandeep Warrior shelled 24 runs from his two overs while Pat Cummins – the expensive cricketer in the auction gave 15 runs from his sole over.
Hardik Pandya slaps Pat Cummins for a six
Kolkata made a comeback in the middle overs picking a couple of wickets but with Rohit in the middle; Mumbai Indians were up for a big score. Dinesh Karthik had brought in Pat Cummins to pull the brakes but nothing seemed to work in his favour.
The duel between Cummins and Hardik Pandya in the 17th over was worth watch. After putting two half-pitch deliveries to the leg-side boundary, the Aussie pace made a superb comeback with bodyline bouncer catching Pandya off-guard. But Pandya responded well in the very next ball putting him out of the park.
Also Read: IPL 2020: Ishant Sharma To Miss More Matches For Delhi Capitals
Meanwhile, the all-rounder was lining up for the back of a length and Pat Cummins aided to his plans. Hardik movedd across and nails the pull flat over deep mid-wicket, the ball goes on to strike one of the ad boardings in the stand. Another costly over from Cummins, 19 runs off it as he shelled 49 runs from his three overs.
Watch the video here:
— Cricsphere (@Cricsphere) September 23, 2020
