Till about a year ago, Imran Tahir was a replacement player for the Delhi Daredevils - brought in late into the 7th season, to play the six remaining games. A year later, there’s our Immy, in his manic run, arms outstretched, joy on his face. There he is, running towards the crowd, as his teammates chase him. There he is, one of the finest leg-spinners currently operating in world cricket.
Hence, it wasn’t much of a surprise when Tahir became the recipient of the coveted IPL Purple Cap on Sunday evening. South Africa’s second highest wicket-taker in the recently concluded World Cup, Tahir had bamboozled the Rajasthan batters all throughout the evening. Four overs, 28 runs and four wickets interspersed with ten dots. Tahir gave absolutely nothing away.
For six seasons, Tahir has had to wait for an IPL contract, till the offer from the Daredevils came his way last year. In between he had represented as many as 26 different teams across three different continents, but the Purple Cap is his first. After taking a solitary wicket during the Daredevils’ opening encounter against Chennai, Tahir came into the Rajasthan game, resolute and determined. His first wicket was off a marvelous googly. Stuart Binny, got hit on his pads, in front of the stumps by a Tahir wrong-un that very few would have been able to read. And ironically, sometime early in his career, it was for this knack of bowling googlies that Tahir got written off from Pakistan cricket.
In T20, effective bowlers often get hit out of the attack after picking up a wicket, but much to Tahir, and captain, JP Duminy’s credit, that never happened in this case. Tahir was used sparingly and cleverly, as he picked up his second wicket in the 16th over, a dangerous looking Ajinkya Rahane was dismissed. How? While trying to slog. Slog what? An Imran Tahir googly that clipped the leg stump. Tahir continued picking up wickets, and at crucial junctures. A bludgeoning attack from young Deepak Hooda was brought to an end by Tahir, and Rajasthan’s Man of the Match from the previous game, James Faulkner was tricked by Tahir’s guile. The master of the wrong-un, struck with his most effective weapon, forcing Faulkner to play a sweep shot and getting him out cheaply.
The Faulkner wicket sent Tahir out on his famous dash, as he posed for the shutterbugs near deep cover. In a few overs time, Delhi Daredevils were at the receiving end of a narrow loss, yet again. But Immy vowed to continue fighting. “I promise things will change for us. We just need to be confident and back ourselves,” said Tahir at the post-match press conference. With 5 wickets from two games, he is now the leading wicket-taker at the IPL, and it’s been a long time since a Dilly Boy held that achievement. But for the luck-factor to get running again for the Delhi Daredevils and for the victories to return, performers like Tahir need to keep putting forward their A-game. And one can always trust Tahir to do so.
Image Credit: BCCI,
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Till about a year ago, Imran Tahir was a replacement player for the Delhi Daredevils - brought in late into the 7th season, to play the six remaining games. A year later, there’s our Immy, in his manic run, arms outstretched, joy on his face. There he is, running towards the crowd, as his teammates chase him. There he is, one of the finest leg-spinners currently operating in world cricket.
Hence, it wasn’t much of a surprise when Tahir became the recipient of the coveted IPL Purple Cap on Sunday evening. South Africa’s second highest wicket-taker in the recently concluded World Cup, Tahir had bamboozled the Rajasthan batters all throughout the evening. Four overs, 28 runs and four wickets interspersed with ten dots. Tahir gave absolutely nothing away.
For six seasons, Tahir has had to wait for an IPL contract, till the offer from the Daredevils came his way last year. In between he had represented as many as 26 different teams across three different continents, but the Purple Cap is his first. After taking a solitary wicket during the Daredevils’ opening encounter against Chennai, Tahir came into the Rajasthan game, resolute and determined. His first wicket was off a marvelous googly. Stuart Binny, got hit on his pads, in front of the stumps by a Tahir wrong-un that very few would have been able to read. And ironically, sometime early in his career, it was for this knack of bowling googlies that Tahir got written off from Pakistan cricket.
In T20, effective bowlers often get hit out of the attack after picking up a wicket, but much to Tahir, and captain, JP Duminy’s credit, that never happened in this case. Tahir was used sparingly and cleverly, as he picked up his second wicket in the 16th over, a dangerous looking Ajinkya Rahane was dismissed. How? While trying to slog. Slog what? An Imran Tahir googly that clipped the leg stump. Tahir continued picking up wickets, and at crucial junctures. A bludgeoning attack from young Deepak Hooda was brought to an end by Tahir, and Rajasthan’s Man of the Match from the previous game, James Faulkner was tricked by Tahir’s guile. The master of the wrong-un, struck with his most effective weapon, forcing Faulkner to play a sweep shot and getting him out cheaply.
The Faulkner wicket sent Tahir out on his famous dash, as he posed for the shutterbugs near deep cover. In a few overs time, Delhi Daredevils were at the receiving end of a narrow loss, yet again. But Immy vowed to continue fighting. “I promise things will change for us. We just need to be confident and back ourselves,” said Tahir at the post-match press conference. With 5 wickets from two games, he is now the leading wicket-taker at the IPL, and it’s been a long time since a Dilly Boy held that achievement. But for the luck-factor to get running again for the Delhi Daredevils and for the victories to return, performers like Tahir need to keep putting forward their A-game. And one can always trust Tahir to do so.
Image Credit: BCCI,
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