Harshit Rana dropped two catches but Venkatesh Iyer held on to Jake Fraser-McGurk’s to nip DC’s innings at the bud.
Catches win matches. The ramifications of a dropped catch however can be wide-ranging. Here’s Lizaad Williams’ version: Having just conceded 23 runs in the opening over after Philip Salt and Sunil Narine went absolutely ballistic, Williams retired to the outfield, probably to introspect on what went so horribly wrong in only his second IPL appearance. But the ball found another way to tail him.
Kolkata Knight Riders’ Philip Salt plays a shot (ANI)
On strike was Philip Salt, ominously finding his range within just six balls. First ball of the second over, Khaleel Ahmed pitched full and quick, prompting Salt to go after him. It was a miscue alright, resulting in a skier that should be caught 99 out of 100 times. But this was probably that 100th time as Williams ran in, settled under the ball with a reverse cup, only to spill it. Dropped catches are never pretty to look at but from Delhi Capitals’ perspective, it was nothing less than mortifying as Salt and Narine went on to add 56 runs in the next 30 balls to give Kolkata Knight Riders an emphatic start in a seven-wicket win with 21 balls to spare.
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This dropped-catches saga comprises a Harshit Rana chapter too, albeit a version where he probably lucked out big time. Ninth over of Delhi Capitals’ innings, Varun Chakaravarthy slid in a length ball that Rishabh Pant looked to swipe over short-fine leg. The shot didn’t connect, and all Harshit Rana had to do was hold his nerve after closing in from short third man. But he didn’t. That reprieve didn’t cost KKR too much given Pant kept going for cute shots till Chakaravarthy got him two overs later.
Palming Kuldeep Yadav’s top-edge over the deep square-leg boundary for a six however could have really hurt KKR. This was off Mitchell Starc—already enduring a hard time this IPL—and a difficult chance too since Rana was running in full tilt from deep square-leg. But from that point every run Kuldeep scored was bonus, as he ended on an unbeaten 35, the second highest IPL score at No 9. Luckily for Rana, this too didn’t matter in the long run partly because of KKR’s scintillating opening partnership, and partly because the most important catch of the match had not been fluffed.
This version features Jake Fraser-McGurk, who carried in a strike rate of 233 courtesy 46 boundary hits, half of them sixes, from his last five appearances. He is one of the reasons Delhi Capitals have come around from nowhere in this IPL. And at Eden Gardens where 127 sixes—the highest among all IPL venues—had been aggregated till before Monday’s game, Capitals couldn’t be blamed for depending on Fraser-McGurk to provide the initial momentum.
Glimpses of that form showed, first when he cleared his front leg and swatted Starc over wide long-on for a confidence-denting six. Four off the next ball, this time Fraser-McGurk exploiting a full toss from Starc by reaching for it and slicing it over the fielder at short third man, and it seemed Delhi were almost getting there. Starc was more accurate next ball though, arrowing in a full, slanting delivery that Fraser-McGurk tried to whip after clearing his front leg. But it couldn’t clear the longest part of the leg-side boundary where Venkatesh Iyer dived forward to take the catch inches off the ground.
