Eoin Morgan. (Photo Source: Twitter)
The IPL 2021 has so far been a big see-saw ride as the teams playing in Chennai have exceedingly struggled to score runs, whereas teams playing in Mumbai having been manufacturing a plethora of big scores at a brisk rate. This oxymoron occurrence has therefore fully been an engrossing affair for the fans, as almost each IPL game has produced some utterly close-fought encounters, especially ones that have happened in Chennai have been highly suspenseful.
With such a dramatic variance, there’s also been a drastic impact on the forms of some elite players, who because of the complex match situations have failed to deliver as expected. While some of them have been obnoxious because of the excruciating match conditions, others have been seen being incautious with their approach.
Their deficit performances have made their franchises struggle in big time and it’s only about a matter of time where their bona fide establishments in the playing XI might come into question.
Here is the list of 5 such players whose forms are a concern for their teams:
1. Hardik Pandya
There’s no doubt that Hardik Pandya’s explosive batting has been a little ambiguous in recent times, as the cricketer before the IPL was seen struggling in the five-match T20I series against England. The bogus pitches at the Ahmedabad Stadium had refrained Hardik to play his through the line firepower strokes and as a result that towering strike rate coming from his flammable batting was seen missing especially at the end.
Such has been a scenario even in the MI camp, as the junior Pandya is seen struggling big time to transpire his team towards those lofty match-winning totals. Apart from Kieron Pollard, MI’s lower-middle order has extensively failed in all of their four games and someone like Hardik Pandya is a vital cog of that middle-order.
The sluggish wickets at the Chepauk have disintegrated Hardik to play his natural strokes and with perplexing conditions, he has been grappling with his timing. Although apart from AB de Villiers, almost every other batter has felt the dense heat of the dreadful wickets in Chennai, with Hardik’s batting capable of judging the right balls to fetch crucial boundaries, the cricketer needs to find smart ways of scoring runs.
At least with spinners now getting infused in the death overs of play, few of their half volleys or short deliveries can be ensured as a gift by Hardik to tonk the ball into the stands. The scores of 13, 15, 7,0 surely demand some vigorous resolve by Hardik, as MI will be playing a lot more on similar tracks. All in all, to continue as a bona fide batsman in the team, Hardik surely has to mend ways to bring up some crucial contributions for his team.
2. Nicholas Pooran
Being a significant cog in PBKS’s batting lineup, so far Nicholas Pooran has been in a very griming form, wherein from his four games, a total of mere 9 runs have come from his blade. His bleak batting causes have completely brought despair in PBKS’s middle-order batting, and direct effects have been seen with the top-order playing in a defensive approach.
Out of his four outings, Nicholas Pooran has so far only faced a collective total of 11 deliveries, which indicates his reckless batting nature. Despite mostly playing on the flat batting wickets of the Wankhede stadium, Nicholas Pooran, rather than giving himself some time at the crease, has indulged himself into some unmindful dismissals. His shot selection seems to be awful, as Nicholas Pooran is highly capable of playing cautiously in the start and then capitalize after consuming some deliveries.
All in all, the flat alluring pitches of the Wankhede stadium could have been the fitting place for Nicholas Pooran to get himself going in the IPL 2021, but with the PBKS now moving to Chennai, Pooran’s dubious batting might face a bigger ordeal at the Chepauk pitches.
3. Eoin Morgan
Despite having a robust set of batters, the KKR team has mystically been fitful with their batting business, whose direct strains have been witnessed in captain Eoin Morgan’s batting. Because of the obnoxious nature of the tracks in Chennai, Morgan has struggled to play his through the line strokes eventually finding the conditions a tad alien and challenging.
Apart from the conditions, it’s also the match situations that have propelled Morgan to get irregular with his big scores. Out of KKR’s four games, the team has been asked to chase three steep run chases and with their top-order failing consistently, players like Morgan, Dinesh Karthik, and Andre Russell have been seen overburdened on all three occasions. Especially someone like Morgan, who bats at number five, has never enjoyed a leeway to play his natural game and that’s the reason why his batting has been uncertain.
Hopefully, with KKR now moving to better batting wickets like Mumbai and Ahmedabad, skipper Morgan and his team will be anticipated to undergo a big progression. Especially if the top-order provides the momentum in tandem, then even Eoin Morgan’s batting might flourish in this process.
4. Shardul Thakur
Not long ago in the limited-overs series against England, Shardul Thakur was India’s biggest match-winner, but now in the IPL 2021, his form seems to be diminished. His first four games for CSK have become havoc for the speedster, as Shardul Thakur has only picked 3 wickets at a soaring economy of 11.3.
Although the playing conditions at the Wankhede stadium can become a graveyard for the bowlers, it’s actually his wicket-taking ability that has taken the biggest hit over his lofty economy. Because of the flat decks at the Wankhede stadium, Shardul’s variations have become less effective, which often in other cases have yielded him his wickets. Also, not to forget, with Deepak Chahar and Sam Curran bowling extensively in the powerplay situations, Shardul then has to mainly make up for bowling in the difficult overs.
A further regression in his bowling might create bigger roadblocks for CSK, as the team does not possess another Indian capped seamer to replace him. However, with the ‘yellow army’ now moving to static wickets like Delhi, Shardul Thakur eventually might find his effectiveness back on such pitches.
5. Shakib Al Hasan
Shakib Al Hasan was KKR’s biggest purchase in the February auction and was supposed to play an integral role in the team’s departments. However, in the first three games, where Shakib’s overall proposition could have bagged some wins for KKR, has actually got him dropped in their fourth game.
Both Shakib’s batting and bowling could have yielded KKR some match-winning gains at the Chepauk, especially considering his vast experience in such conditions. His multidimensional batting on such wickets had become an utterly dreadful scenario for KKR especially considering the steep run chases that the team had to triumph. Also, a routine top-order failure kept Shakib’s batting position in the juggle, eventually never allowing him to settle at one spot.
As a bowler who was technically replacing the services of Sunil Narine, Shakib could only grab 2 wickets at an economy of 8.7. All in all, Shakib’s IPL comeback has been highly direful and it will be interesting to see how KKR manages him further.
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