http://www.senore.com/Cricket/V-Sehwag-c2739 – Cricket News Update
Sri Lankan batsman Mahela Jayawardene, currently playing for the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Delhi-c780 Daredevils in the ongoing 5th edition of the Indian Premier League, praised teammate Kevin Pietersen for his century in their recent clash with the Deccan Chargers, and also
lauded the captaincy skills of Virender Sehwag.
“KP (Pietersen) played exceptionally well. Last night's knock from KP is one of the best I have seen. It was a very good game yesterday,” Jayawardene said.
The match, played at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, culminated in a 5-wicket victory for the Daredevils – a win which propelled them to number one on the tournament points table (having won 4 of the 5 matches they have played so far), upsetting the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Rajasthan-c837
Royals’ reign at the top.
Pietersen’s impressive unbeaten 103 off 64 deliveries (including nine sixes – the highest in the current season of the IPL so far) played a large part in the victory. The Daredevils’ bowlers had managed to restrict the Chargers to a manageable score of 157,
but their openers, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Naman-Ojha-c2057 and Virender Sehwag, failed to give the team a solid base to build on. The wicket-keeper batsman managed a mere 1 run contribution, while the skipper contributed 7 before both were sent back to the pavilion by the 4th
over, leaving their side at a shaky 15 for 2.
Luckily, they had Pietersen to fall back on, and the English batsman did not disappoint, singlehandedly propelling his side to a final score of 162 with 5 balls remaining, at the expense of 5 wickets – a performance which won him the Player of the Match
award.
In addition to praising the 31-year-old right-hander, Jayawardene also went on to defend Sehwag, whose highest score in the 2012 IPL so far has been 33 (against the Chennai Super Kings). The Lankan batsman pointed out that Sehwag had managed to captain the
side effectively so far, and was the best candidate to keep the team performing consistently throughout the tournament.
“Viru (Sehwag) is a good leader, very aggressive. He expects us to play aggressively. We have had a good start to the tournament. It is a long tournament hence we need to keep the consistency going,” he said.
Tags: