Kings XI Punjab’s (KXIP) swashbuckling batsman Chris Gayle was left "angry and upset" going into the Super-Over against Mumbai Indians (MI) in Dubai on Sunday (October 18) as he felt his team was in a comfortable position to win the normal game.
Chasing 177 to win, Kings XI were cruising when skipper KL Rahul (77 off 51 balls) and Gayle (24) were at the crease. But as soon as their partnership was broken, KXIP failed to keep the required run-rate under check and lost Nicholas Pooran (24) and Glenn Maxwell in quick succession.
Thanks to Deepak Hooda (23* off 16 balls) and Chris Jordan’s (13 off 8 balls) effort in the death overs, Punjab managed to tie the match on the last delivery.
In the one-over eliminator, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami displayed their brilliance, conceding only 5 runs each to take the game into another Super-Over.
In the second Super-Over, however, KXIP dominated MI. Chris Jordan gave away 11 runs against Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard while Gayle and Mayank Agarwal took just four balls to knock off the runs versus Trent Boult.
"No, I wasn't nervous. I was a bit more angry and upset that we got ourselves in this position. But it's a game of cricket and these things do happen," Gayle told Agarwal and Shami during a post-match show for IPLT20.com.
"Even when we were going out to bat (in the second Super Over) you asked me 'who is going to face the first ball'. I was like 'Mayank you really asked that question? It has to be the boss who faces the first ball'," he added.
Gayle also hailed Shami for his heroics in the first Super Over against Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock.
"Shami is the man of the match for me. To defend six runs against Rohit (Sharma) and (Quinton) de Kock, that's fantastic. That's a great job."
"I have faced you in the nets and I know that you can nail those yorkers, and nail them well. Today he came and delivered and brought it home for us," he said.
Shami, who nailed his yorkers to perfection in the first Super-Over, said with the margin of error being so less he just focussed on what he knew he could do best.
"It was very difficult. When you get 15-17 runs to defend in the Super Over, it's a different matter altogether. You believe at the back of your mind that you can do it.
"But when the margin of error is so less, you focus on what you can do best. I believe a lot in myself. When I was going back on the top of my mark every ball, I was saying to myself, 'This last ball was great. The next ball will be great too'. I repeated that six times," Shami stated.
Agarwal, who smashed two fours in the second Super-Over off Boult to see KXIP through, said he came with the intent of hitting boundaries.
"The game against Delhi Capitals came to my mind. However, Gayle told me 'Mayank, just watch the ball and the rest will be fine'."
"And that was all that I had in my mind that I have to watch the ball and hit it. I didn't think about taking ones and twos. I was determined to hit a boundary and luckily it did happen," he remarked.
