Batting personnel for Super Over by RR draws out mixed views with Ian Bishop thinking they were the wrong choices.
Batting in the Super Over is a very tricky proposition. However, choosing the right batting personnel can go a very long way in winning you half the battle.
So when the DC vs RR game ended in a Super Over courtesy of Starc’s peerless last over, Royals had a big choice to make. And they did, except those choices have raised more questions than answers in cricketing discourses.
With Yashasvi Jaiswal as the third batsman, RR put in Shimron Hetmyer and Riyan Parag, a left-right combo, for the Super Over. Parag and Jaiswal were run out on the fourth and fifth deliveries, respectively, after Starc grabbed the ball for DC once again and gave up just 11. Against Sandeep Sharma, KL Rahul and Tristan Stubbs had to chase it down in just four balls.
The big question in the aftermath was pretty simple- did the Royals get their batting choices wrong?
What the experts said
“I think Nitish should have been there in those three,” Pujara said on ESPNcricinfo TimeOut. “But I don’t know whether he should have started. I would want Jaiswal to start because of the way he bats against Mitchell Starc – his record [against Starc] has been phenomenal across formats [26 runs from 15 balls without a dismissal in T20s and 133 from 203 with three dismissals in Tests].
“I know it was the Super Over and Starc was just trying to execute his yorkers, but there’s a psychological advantage. If Yashasvi had faced a few balls, then Starc would have been under some pressure.”
Bishop, Pujara’s co-panellist on the show, agreed. “I like Jaiswal at the top there, but I am biased towards Nitish Rana as well,” he said. “I would not mind Rana’s silky skill to come in there, not necessarily raw power.”
DC captain Axar Patel was surprised to see Hetmyer come out too. “Hetmyer wasn’t able to connect in the match either,” Axar said after the game. “So I felt Jaiswal and Riyan would come out. But it worked out well for us, whoever they sent out.”