New Delhi: Abdul Samad stayed calm amid an unexpected ending as Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Rajasthan Royals by four wickets in the Indian Premier League on Sunday.
It was IPL drama at its best as Sandeep Sharma needed to defend 17 off the last six balls at Jaipur. He gave away 12 runs off the first five balls, and then Samad was out caught off the last one, only for it to be deemed a no ball.
Samad smacked the free hit for six as Rajasthan lost a game it thought it had won just a minute earlier.
Samad finished with a run-a-ball 17 not out, with Glenn Phillips’ 25 off seven balls making the chase possible. Hyderabad finished on 217/6, propelled by Abhishek Sharma’s 55 off 34.
After the last ball thriller, Samad shared his experience and feelings in a video shared by the Sunrisers Hyderabad on their social media handle, and said that he felt lucky with the opportunity to finish the game.
“When I went in to bat we required 40 runs off 2 overs then Glenn came in. He played an exceptional knock. So that gave me a confidence as well. So in the last over when I got the opportunity to bat. We needed like 17 runs off six balls. I knew that he was going to ball yorker only”.
“Hence, I was standing deep in the crease. First ball I was standing in front just to make it full toss. But it didn’t work, he bowled a little back. Then I went back, he bowled a fuller ball I hit it for six”, he added.
Abhishek Sharma then asked him: “When we all were sitting at the dressing room, I personally knew that you were going to hit that four runs but unfortunately you couldn’t at the first time. So what were you thinking then? When you got the no ball signal, what were you thinking after that?”
“I felt lucky at that time and I think that I got another opportunity to finish. In the last ball I was very confident that he bowled a no ball and that meant that I had to finish the game,” replied Samad.
“So on the last ball, he missed his yorker, I hit it for a six. Very grateful and I was very happy because my father was watching the game and I really enjoyed it,” he added.
Agencies

KR Desk