Royal Challengers Bangalore’s Harshal Patel and Dinesh Karthik would both agree that the margin of error in this format is thinner than the shadow of a hair. Lucknow Super Giants needed five runs off the last over in a match which oscillated like a pendulum in the death overs.
With the wicket of Mark Wood off the second ball, RCB appeared back in the game. But then it came down to just one run off the last ball. There was Harshal’s failed attempt to run out Ravi Bishnoi at the non-striker’s end and, eventually, the fumble from Karthik which could have resulted in a run out and a Super Over.
“That’s the (nature of the) game,” said man of the match Nicholas Pooran.
“We saw Rinku Singh (of Kolkata Knight Riders against Gujarat Titans) scoring 30 off the last five balls. It’s never over. There are a lot of incredible players and incredible batsmen in the world now and anything is possible once you are there. With power and timing anything is possible for these guys.”
Much before the drama unfolded, Pooran was the man who put Lucknow back in the game. Coming in to bat when his team needed 114 off 56 deliveries, the West Indies player launched a brutal counterattack, sending the ball soaring high into every corner of the compact park during a 19-ball 62 (4×4; 7×6). The southpaw chose temperament over temptation and in the process dragged the Giants back into contention.
Breaking down his innings, which included a 15-ball 50, the fastest this season, the 27-year-old said, “I try my best to watch a game, break it down and be in the moment. We had lost three wickets, the run rate was up to 15, we could have easily been out of the game, psychologically. But, in this game, I felt it was all about partnerships. When you get into that zone, it’s easier to break it down into smaller achievable targets. You know your matchups, who you look to attack, and who you can get a 15-20 runs over from. That is how the game should be played.”
Pooran, who was brought for Rs 10.75 crore by Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2022 only to be released after a season, spent considerable time with batting stalwart Brian Lara, the mentor of SRH.
The leanings from his countryman seems to show now.
“T20 is a difficult game. Experience plays a massive role. I have struggled for the last six-seven years in finishing games. I make bad decisions at the wrong time. It is just a learning curve for me in my journey. I am happy that I can learn from it and come up with a match-winning performance. A lot of the game is played in the mind and that is why MS Dhoni, Kieron Pollard, these guys are so good at the end,” Pooran said.
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