Dubai: After registering a 17-run win over SunRisers Hyderabad in Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Delhi Capitals all-rounder Marcus Stoinis move to open the innings in the clash against SRH Qualifier 2 turned out to be a master-stroke. His performance was terrific on Sunday (November 8) and also took three key wickets of Priyam Garg, Manish Pandey and Kane Williamson.
Stoinis all-round show impressed former West Indies batsman Brian Lara, he praised the Aussie for his brilliance on the field. He also indicated that Royal Challengers Bangalore were not able to bring out the talent of the all-rounder the way Ricky Ponting was able to do it at the Delhi Capitals in this season.
“He got let off by RCB last year and see what he’s doing for DC this year,” Lara was quoted as saying to Star Sports. “Ricky had spoken to me a couple of times about the possibilities of opening the batting. It just worked out and we thought this was the game to do it. In one of the games, I batted at No.3 and it didn’t come off as we were chasing 220,” he recalled.
“He also had a field day with the ball as he removed Manish Pandey and the dangerous Kane Williamson at the right time in his spell of 3 for 26 in four overs. Bowling in this format is always hard and it’s more about planning and having a good idea before you get to the ground.
“For Stoinis, the basic idea of T20 bowling, more than taking wickets, is containment. Just be clear that in T20, you are not always trying to take wickets but control the run-rate and controlling the game builds some pressure.” Lara said.
