SRH were planning for a win to be in contention for the playoffs. After choosing to bat first, one of the openers, Abishek Sharma, got out with a not-so-convincing start. This eventually madeTripathi get a go in his best position, with so much responsibility on his shoulders.
A shaky start at the slow pitch went on to flick so early – got him a run in his first ball. The on-field challenges laid in front of him revealed a wide range of cricketing lurking inside Tripathi.
Tripathi showed his dimensions in shot-making with the stunning sweep and lofted cover drive off the left-arm spinner, Sanjay Yadav. The word elegant can easily match up with those two shots.
Then in the next over against Bumrah, the vibrant Tripathi went with even more class. A pull shot of a soaring short ball to the longer side of the boundary made a statement that he was all set to roar.
What followed was more than divine. A late cut bisected the short third-man and point against a slower one of Bumrah. Addedly, a cover drive was made in no time against the Bumrah’s typical Yorker. All these three shots in an over against a world-beater showed how good he looked at the ball. It showed how good Tripathi was playing throughout the season.
Tripathi commenced his innings with more than he could have expected. Then came the sensibilities of Tripathi into the play. He went to rotate the strike as Priyam Garg, from the other end, was igniting the slump with his mojo.
Even in that process, Tripathi went on to show his mode of the class by dancing down the ground and playing an inside-out cover-drive against S Yadav.
It wasn’t the easiest pitch to score runs. The ball was doing well for the slowers, and a popping bounce made batting difficult. But the determination of SRH batters in a decisive match made them play some excellent shots.
When Nicholas Pooran walked in, things got even easier for Tripathi, as Pooran was in ghost mode right from the beginning. Their partnership began to become the core of SRH’s innings. Runs flew in with much ease.
Standing applause from the SRH camp when Tripathi reached his fifty runs in 32 balls.
Danil Sams’ 16 th over showed what settled Tripathi can do in death overs. Out and outclass. What fascinates me more is his ability to fetch the distance and elevation he can bring in with his timing. Those shots in that particular over were a marriage of beauty and brutality. A six over long-on region made the white Kookaburra fly almost over the third tier.
A shuffled sweep shot and a perfectly timed cut shot for four in that over made us realise how difficult it is to be in the shoes of Tripathi, who hasn’t been recognised for the Indian flannels, with such quality.
The show wasn’t over; it also had a six to add in the midwicket against Meredith. Every boundary hit by him thundered more emphatically than the last.
The slowness in the pitch took care of Tripathi’s dismissal. A brave slot ball from Ramandeep Singh let Tripathi mistime. Walked off with so much disappointment. A 100 runs mark for that kind of quality innings would have been more satisfying, even for the spectators.
The apparent comfort of Rahul Tripathi separates him from the rest of the bests. The only problem is he gets caught in crossfires of being bold in approach. Rahul Tripathi is still vying for a slot in the Indian team with many abilities inside him. Overall, Tripathi was able to bring in his A-game at the crunch game. Big game pedigree and vast experience need more recognition.
