Kings XI Punjab batsman Mayank Agarwal produced an extraordinary fielding effort that went a long way in restricting Mumbai Indians to just 11 runs in the super over.
Chris Jordan’s attempted yorker came out as a full-toss and Kieron Pollard hit a lofted shot towards the leg side. Agarwal jumped high in the air, caught the ball and threw back into the field of play before falling outside the boundary ropes.
He saved a certain six there and MI could score only two runs off that delivery and ended up with a total of 11 runs. KXIP chased that down within four balls owing to a six by Chris Gayle and two boundaries by Mayank himself.
Twitter went berserk and said it was the best save of the IPL, closest to the one earlier in the tournament by Nicholas Pooran. According to them, it was one of the main reasons that KXIP could win the game in the super over. Here are some of the reactions of the fans and the experts:
Talking about his effort after the match, Agarwal said, “I was close to the boundary, Pollard hit it and the thought was if I can just keep it inside, then we are going to save runs and luckily that helped our team.”
‘This is Sport, It’s Hard but You Can’t Live Without it’
Mayank Agarwal when asked by Mark Nicholas on the commentary about the happenings of the last 45 minutes of the game, where his side almost won the game, then almost lost it and finally finished on the right side of it, he said, “This is sport, it can get hard, but you can’t live without it.”
When asked about his mindset after Gayle hit the first ball for six, Agarwal said that they had nothing to lose and had to go for their shots. “After the first ball six, the pressure was off us. Just for a moment or two, the Delhi Capitals game flashed through my mind (the game which Punjab lost in the Super Over) and then it was just going there, watching the ball and hitting. We had decided that whatever happens, I’m going to go [for my shots].”
Needing five runs off the remaining four balls, Agarwal hit the third ball of the over towards the off side for a boundary and the next one on the leg side for another one to take his side home.
Kings XI Punjab after that win are now equal on the points with Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad. Asked if they can still qualify in the fourth place, Agarwal said that they are not thinking about the points table and taking one game at a time and try to win on that given day.
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