Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma nearly pulled off an impossible-looking run-chase for the second game in a row in Mullanpur against SRH today (April 9).
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Chasing 183, the Punjab Kings innings seemed to be going nowhere at 20-3 and 58-4. When Jitesh Sharma was dismissed at the score of 114, PBKS needed another 69 runs in 4.3 overs with just four wickets in hand.
Shashank and Ashutosh nearly do an encore
A few days ago, the pair had hit headlines after they chased down 50 runs in the last 4.3 overs when no one really gave them a chance against Gujarat Titans.
Today, against SRH, they joined hands at the crease at the exact same point – on the fourth ball of the 16th over, but the task was much steeper and despite their heroics from the last game, they weren’t expected to get anywhere close to the target.
As it turned out, PBKS eventually lost by just two runs as Shashank and Ashutosh added 66 off 27, getting agonisingly close to a target that looked extremely distant when they came together.
When Ashutosh Sharma joined Shashank Singh, PBKS needed 69 in 27 balls with a target of 183 against SRH.
They took Punjab agonisingly close before falling two runs short. #IPL2024 pic.twitter.com/DWYxAf57Ps
— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) April 9, 2024
How the partnership unfolded
Shashank hit three boundaries off Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the 17th over as Ashutosh tried to get his eye in. Cummins, who had given only 11 runs in his three overs, bowled the 18th. Ashutosh, playing his second IPL game and facing up to one of the best fast bowlers in the world, hit him for two fours in the over as the equation came down to 39 off the last two.
Natarajan came on to bowl the 19th and was clear with his plans of sticking to the wide yorkers. Ashutosh read him and swept a ball close to the wide line past long on for a one-bounce four. Shashank then ramped him three balls later for another boundary. Yet, the over brought only 10 runs.
The last over drama
Jaydev Unadkat was entrusted with the responsibility of defending 29 off the last over. The first ball was slogged to mid-wicket by Ashutosh where the fielder palmed the ball over the boundary. Two wides followed before the next legal delivery saw almost the same action – another big hit palmed over the boundary. This time by the long-off fielder.
The next two balls were hit into the leg side for twos before another wide brought the equation down to 10 off two. Unfortunately for PBKS, Ashutosh couldn’t connect well on the penultimate ball as his slog headed towards the deep square leg fielder, who shelled the catch – making it the third drop of the over.
Shashank then smashed the final ball for a six as PBKS finished on 180, two runs short of SRH’s 182.
SRH's Jaydev Unadkat needed to defend 29 runs in the last over against PBKS.
Three drops and three wides followed in the nine-ball over but SRH finally edged ahead by just two runs. #IPL2024 #PBKSvsSRH pic.twitter.com/FR9AcZLewn
— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) April 9, 2024
