The ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has produced a whole host of nerve-jangling moments so far. However, the past 24 hours have been extraordinarily rare, with not one, not two, but three batters falling agonisingly short of registering well-deserved centuries. Moments like these don’t unfold often, and hence, have become a hot topic.
Each edition of the IPL has seen batters falling in their nineties. has been no different in this regard. It is the first time in the history of the marquee T20 league that three players have been dismissed in the 90s within a single day. Below is the list of the three players, a brief rundown of their innings, how they got dismissed, and the ultimate outcome of the game.
Here are three players who missed centuries in last 24 hours:
3. Prabhsimran Singh (PBKS- 91 off 48 vs Lucknow Super Giants)
After being put in to bat first by Lucknow Super Giants, gave Punjab Kings a flying start during the powerplay. He had already reached 29 off his first 15 deliveries by the end of the first six overs. The hard-hitting opener brought up his third consecutive half-century this season, reaching the milestone off just 30 deliveries.
Prabhsimran hit one four and five sixes in the next 17 balls after reaching his fifty. He was dismissed for 91 (48) on the penultimate delivery of the penultimate over. His knock comprised six fours and one additional six. A reverse-scoop went horribly wrong for Prabhsimran, who could only offer a catch to Nicholas Pooran at extra cover. PBKS ended up winning the game by 37 runs.
2. Ayush Mhatre (CSK- 94 off 48 vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru)
Chasing a 214-run target set by RCB, Ayush Mhatre could manage only 10 off his first nine deliveries. Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s second over of the game, Chennai Super Kings’ fourth, was when Mhatre truly switched gears. Each of the seasoned campaigner’s deliveries—barring the fourth, which was hit for six—raced away to the fence. Mhatre brought up his maiden IPL half-century in just his fourth innings. For the unversed, the 17-year-old teenage sensation came in for the injured full-time skipper, Ruturaj Gaikwad.
He navigated the middle overs by rotating the strike with ease, allowing Ravindra Jadeja to be the aggressor during their partnership. The 114-run stand came to an end with Mhatre on 94. The youngster tried to attack a slower delivery from Lungi Ngidi, but ended up getting more elevation than distance. Krunal Pandya took a comfortable catch. CSK ended up losing the game by an extremely narrow margin of two runs.
3 Australian players who need to go unsold in next IPL
1. Riyan Parag (RR- 95 off 45 vs Kolkata Knight Riders)
Stand-in captain arrived at the crease with Rajasthan Royals in all sorts of trouble during their run chase against Kolkata Knight Riders. RR had already lost Vaibhav Suryavanshi (four off two) and Kunal Singh Rathore (zero off five) by the end of the second over. Yashasvi Jaiswal (34 off 21) looked good during his stay but was dismissed by the end of the powerplay. RR had lost half their side by the eighth over. The 13th over of the second innings seemed to have completely changed the complexion of the game.
Parag went all guns blazing, steamrolling Moeen Ali for five consecutive sixes. Coming off an impressive bowling performance in the first innings (1/21 in three overs), Parag looked set for a maiden IPL ton after surpassing his highest IPL score on the fourth ball of the 16th over. A stunning knock came to an agonising end in the 18th over. Parag holed out to long-on in a bid to go big. RR ended up losing the game by the barest of margins, with the hosts claiming victory by just one run.
