CSK had to suffer the loss of fast bowler Anshul Kamboj’s failure.Image Credit source: PTI
Chennai Super Kings’ playoff hopes got a big blow when Lucknow Super Giants, who were already out of the title race, defeated them by 7 wickets. Lucknow achieved the target of 188 runs in this match within 17 overs. The reason for this victory of Lucknow was the explosive batting of Mitchell Marsh and Nicholas Pooran, who destroyed the Chennai bowlers. But the one who got hit the most was fast bowler Anshum Kamboj, in whose name some unwanted records were registered.
In this match played at Ekana Stadium in Lucknow, on one side we saw the havoc of LSG fast bowler Akash Singh, who was playing his first match this season and took 3 wickets for just 26 runs. On the other hand, there was Chennai pacer Anshul Kamboj, who was bowling continuously this season and was in the race for the Purple Cap with 19 wickets. But for Kamboj, this match did not prove to be like the other matches of this season.
Anshul started bowling in the powerplay and was removed after just 2 overs because hardly anyone could have imagined what happened to him. Anshul scored 11 runs including 2 fours in his first over. But the real massacre of his bowling happened in the next over. This was the fifth over of the innings and Mitchell Marsh devastated Anshul Kamboj by hitting 4 consecutive sixes on its first 4 balls. If this was not enough, the over also ended with a four.
In this way, Anshul had given away 39 runs in just 2 overs. After this, Chennai captain Ruturaj Gaikwad directly called him to bowl in the 17th over. Then LSG needed 24 runs in 4 overs to win. Lucknow’s victory was certain. But it would not have occurred to anyone that this victory would come in 4 balls instead of 4 overs. Nicholas Puran again hit 4 sixes in the first 4 balls of this over and helped the team reach the target of 188 runs and win.
In this way, from his second over to the last over, Anshul was hit for 8 sixes in just 10 balls. His figures were something like this – 2.4 overs, 63 runs, 0 wickets, 23.6 economy rate. Anshul Kamboj has the worst economy rate among all the bowlers who have bowled at least 2 overs in the history of 19 seasons of IPL. He broke the record of Washington Sundar, who had given 46 runs in 2 overs.
Not only this, Anshul Kamboj has become the first bowler in IPL history against whom 4-4 sixes have been hit in 2 overs in the same match. Overall, Anshul bowled 16 balls in this match, out of which 11 balls had boundaries (8 sixes, 3 fours). They did not even get any wicket and thus LSG defeated CSK very easily.
