When the IPL began, the feeling that the bowlers were in for a tough time grew. First Brendon McCullum, then Michael Hussey, and then Andrew Symonds kept on re-establishing the benchmark of attacking batsmanship.
It seemed that that there was a lot more to come. Batsmen will do magical things in T20. “200 won’t be a safe score anymore,” said Matthew Hayden. It was almost like as if the bowlers would be out of fashion.
However, 25 days and 33 matches into the championship, all those estimates have proved to be inaccurate. The barrier of 200 plus has been breached just seven times. Four centuries have been hit, and it’s been around 15 days since the last one came around.
So, are the bowlers having a ball because the likes of Hayden, Symonds, McCullum and Hussey have made their bow? And destroyers like Sachin Tendulkar and Chris Gayle haven’t played so far? What is it that the bowlers are doing right?
"Only 4 centuries have been hit, and it’s been
around 15 days since the last one came around "
Almost all teams have reputed international coaches, and video analysts to assist them formulate the gameplan. That means the strategies to contain the batsmen are worked out to the T. For example, the Delhi Daredevils have the services of Dennis Lillee as a bowling consultant.
Thinking out-of-the-box has been the mantra that the bowlers and fielding captains have resorted to, and on various occasions, that approach has paid dividends. Baroda Ranji coach Paras Mhambrey says, “like Team Jaipur skipper Shane Warne got Dimitri Mascarenhas to bowl the first over, and the Englishman picked up a couple of wickets. That experiment worked because the other teams batsmen were not prepared for it.”
The bowlers need to send a thank you note to the fielders as well. The fielding standards of the tournament have been exceptional.
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