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Matthew Hayden on Mitchell Starc: Former Australian batsman Matthew Hayden called Abhishek Sharma’s outside-off swing to Mitchell Starc in the IPL final as ‘the best ball of the IPL’ while Sunil Narine described the ball bowled by champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as the ball. Described as the ‘best player’ as the best ball of the IPL. Shreyas Iyer-led KKR beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets to clinch their third IPL title on Sunday.
Starc’s ball did the job
Hayden told ‘Star Sports Cricket Live’, ‘The ball to Abhishek Sharma was done as soon as it came out of Mitchell Starc’s hands. The best ball of the IPL was in his luck – a very brilliant ball that was very important at the time. Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen said Starc’s ability to get extra pace while maintaining good wrist condition and Narine’s all-round ability gave KKR a boost at the end of the IPL.
Amazing as soon as the wrist position is correct
Pietersen said, ‘Mitchell Starc averaged 136-137 kmph for most of the season but in the last two weeks he bowled over 140 kmph. He is bowling fast. “The first seven (or) maybe eight weeks of this tournament we never saw him swing the ball but in the last couple of weeks he got his wrist right and started swinging the ball,” he said. Pietersen also praised Narine and said the KKR veteran gave a befitting reply to his critics.
‘I was one of Narine’s critics’
“I was one of his most vocal critics at the start of the tournament, saying I didn’t like Sunil Narine at the top of the order because his performances lacked consistency,” he said. “However, he has consistently performed well this season,” Pietersen said. He thought like a batsman, batted like a batsman and scored like a batsman. Former India batsman Ambati Rayudu, meanwhile, credited KKR captain Shreyas Iyer, the coaching staff and the homegrown talent of the team.