IPL 2017: A Farewell From The Season, Not a Good One For KXIP
May 14, 2017 at 10:52 PM
The second last match of this season was supposed to be no less than a complete thriller but turned out to be a completely one-sided game between Kings XI Punjab and Rising Pune Supergiant.
The decider game to witness which team would make it to the playoffs turned out to be totally in favour of Pune.
On Saturday night after Kolkata lost to Mumbai, all the three teams; Mumbai, Kolkata and Hyderabad, all got qualified for the playoffs but Pune looked eager to fetch the points to seal the spot in top-two.
Though, Pune’s winning streak was halted by Delhi Daredevils in New Delhi on Friday, leaving them needing a win against Punjab who themselves have strung together a winning run of their own to stay in contention. A win is all that Punjab needed to qualify, as it will take them to 16 points with a superior net run rate.
Now, Rising Pune Supergiant finish second on the points table, as they registered a nine-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab on Sunday. Chasing a modest target of 74, opener Rahane and skipper Smith were unbeaten for 34 and 15 respectively to guide their side to a comfortable win at home.
After winning the toss and electing to bowl, Pune started well as seamer Jaydev Unadkat got Martin Guptill on the first ball. Axar Patel was the highest run scorer for the Kings XI with 22 runs. A complete batting order collapse followed, with Shardul Thakur, who dismissed Shaun Marsh, Rahul Tewatia, and Glenn Maxwell finished with the bowling figures of 3/19.
Unadkat was also good with his fielding, showing his prowess and skills. For Punjab, such a performance was pretty much unexpected. This great start set the tone for the match, as KXIP got all out for just 73 runs in the 16th over.
This victory by RPS propels them to the second spot in IPL, which means that they will face-off against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday, for the qualifier.
But Punjab Skipper Maxwell did take it to social media to thank all the fans for supporting the franchise and also exclaimed that this year has been a great adventure for him.
He said,
“Well that was less then ideal… Thanks to all the fans that turned up throughout the season to support us. It’s been an adventure! Cheers”
Well that was less then ideal…
Thanks to all the fans that turned up throughout the season to support us. It’s been an adventure! Cheers?— Glenn Maxwell (@Gmaxi_32) May 14, 2017