Andre Russell in full flow is a treat to watch. The man had not set the stage on fire in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for quite some time now. He had a chance to stamp his authority against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) earlier this week but got out after getting a start. With […]
Andre Russell in full flow is a treat to watch. The man had not set the stage on fire in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for quite some time now. He had a chance to stamp his authority against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) earlier this week but got out after getting a start.
With KKR’s top-order failing in a meagre chase as well, Russell got an opportunity to revive the team’s innings against Punjab Kings. And this time around, he made sure to show off his brute power in the middle. After taking his time to settle down, Russell first smashed Odean Smith for three sixes and a four in a single over and then it was Arshdeep Singh’s time to be in the firing line.
The left-arm seamer did well to keep Billings quiet with his variations conceding only a run off the first three balls. But such is Russell’s aura that the bowler missed his line completely as soon as he came on strike. Arshdeep Singh dished out a full toss next only for Russell to go for a full-blooded smash down the ground.
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The shot was so powerful that the umpire and Arshdeep had to move outside the trajectory of the hit to save themselves. The ball went past the bowler very quickly and it wasn’t far away from his head either.
PBKS go down meekly against KKR
As far as the match is concerned, it wasn’t a great day for the Punjab Kings at the office. After being put in to bat first, they started off well with Bhanuka Rajapaksa smashing 31 off 9 deliveries. But they kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were bundled out for just 137 runs.
In response, their bowlers had reduced KKR to 51/4 by seventh over. But Andre Russell found his groove with the bat and he smashed the bowlers left, right and centre. He scored an unbeaten 70 off just 31 balls with two fours and 8 sixes to his name as KKR cantered over the line in the 15th over itself to register their second win in three outings.
