PBKS ended the league stages of the 15th edition of the IPL with a cracking performance across all departments in an inconsequential rubber against Sunrisers Hyderabad, blowing them away by five wickets.
The Kings restricted the Orange Army to a modest total of 157 before chasing it down with close to five overs to spare, thanks to a whirlwind innings of 49* in just 22 deliveries courtesy of Liam Livingstone. The result of the game did not alter much in the larger scheme of things. SRH finished eighth on the table, while Punjab ended in sixth place.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar took the field as captain of the Sunrisers due to the unavailability of usual skipper Kane Williamson, who headed back home for the birth of his child. Kumar won the toss and decided to bat first in their final game of the season. Priyam Garg, who got the Sunrisers off to an excellent start in the previous game, could not produce a repeat of that performance, walking back after making just four runs. The Punjab attack did very well right from the very beginning, with Arshdeep Singh and Livingstone bowling disciplined overs.
The Sunrisers had a lot of starts, but none of them materialised into anything big. Abhishek Sharma and the in-form Rahul Tripathi were able to build a brief partnership after the fall of the first wicket. Just as the partnership began to blossom, Harpreet Brar struck, dismissing Tripathi for 20. Brar struck again in his very next over, spelling doom for Abhishek, who was well on course for a much deserved 50. Nathan Ellis piled on the misery on the Sunrisers, dismissing Nicholas Pooran as he broke the back of the Sunrisers’ batting order.
From then on, it was pretty much a struggle for Hyderabad to get to a decent total. Aiden Markram, Washington Sundar, and Romario Shepherd all chipped in with brief cameos as the Sunrisers total breached the 150-run mark. Brar and Ellis were the pick of the bowlers, picking up three wickets each.
A total of 157 was never going to be difficult for the Punjab Kings, especially in a game where they had nothing to lose. Jonny Bairstow and Shikhar Dhawan started off the innings in fine fashion, scoring a series of boundaries right out of the gate. Bairstow, nevertheless struck five fours before departing for a promising 23.
Shahrukh Khan was next in and also adopted a carefree attitude, similar to what Bairstow was doing. As it did for Bairstow, the strategy was not one with a long-term vision, and Khan walked back for 19.
Livingstone was in a tearing hurry to close matters, as he tried to hit every ball out of the ground from the very outset, and was also successful in his mission. The Lancashire marauder smoked five maximums in his blitzkrieg. Dhawan was dismissed amidst the carnage, but Jitesh Sharma complemented Livingstone perfectly.
The Punjab Kings did display this sort of cricket on multiple occasions this tournament but were not able to replicate it on a regular basis. Coming in with one of the stronger squads post the auctionб the Kings will definitely be disappointed on not making the playoffs yet again, but will be even more gutted with the fact that they threw away a few games that should have comfortably gone their way.
Brief scores
Punjab Kings 160 for 5 (Livingstone 49*, Dhawan 39, Farooqi 2-32) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 157 for 8 (Abhishek 43, Shepherd 26*, Brar 3-26, Ellis 3-40) by 5 wickets
