Plan was to not give Kohli width outside off: Sran

Numbers don’t always tell the complete story and that would hold true for Barinder Sran in the VIVO IPL 2016 final. While Sunrisers Hyderabad won the high-scoring final, the pacer finished with figures of 1 for 41. However, that one wicket was that of Virat Kohli.

Speaking about the significance of the wicket, Sran said, “It is a big thing because that is where the game changed. If he had played a longer innings then he would have finished the game sooner. He was looking to hit every ball. So we were trying for wickets and trying to create pressure and that helped.”

The Royal Challengers Bangalore captain had taken apart attacks throughout the season and had almost seemed unstoppable. As long as the Orange Cap holder was at the crease, the 209-run target seemed gettable. He, along with Chris Gayle, claimed 13 runs off the SRH bowler in his first over to set the chase on course. However, the team kept Sran’s spirits up. At the end of the over the message from the dugout was, “continue to bowl at the length you are bowling; no problem (as) they are going to go for the big hits anyway.”

Speaking about the bowling attack’s plans, Sran added, “The plan was to swing the ball early on and attempt to hit the good areas.”
While the SRH bowlers bent their backs, Gayle and Kohli were in a destructive mode and threatened to bat RCB to a win. But, Ben cutting applied the brakes to claim the West Indian, while Sran returned to claim the RCB skipper. Discussing their strategy for the pair, the bowler said, “We were strictly focussing on the basics. The discussion was to bowl in the right areas. It was a matter of getting that one wicket. And as wickets began to fall, our confidence too came back.”

“For Kohli, the plan was to not give him width outside off-stump; (when there is width) he hits that over cover or past mid-off. I bowled the first ball to him with a bit of width (which got driven for a six over extra cover), but thereafter got my radar right and came back well.”

Sran also admitted that tips from veteran pacer Ashish Nehra and Bhuvneshwar Kumar had helped him. “They have supported me a lot through the season and they have shared their knowledge with me every time I bowled. What plan for which batsman, when to use which delivery and things like that. This will help me in the future as well.”

Reflecting on the title win, Sran said, “This is my first IPL final and there are quite a few guys in the team who are lifting the trophy for the first time.”

“The season has been good but I am not satisfied. I have to work harder; I have to work on different aspects and I hope I do better in the next season,” he concluded.