'It's hard to describe what he's done for us' – Sangakkara hails Buttler ahead of IPL final
Kumar Sangakkara cannot recall seeing anyone bat better than Rajasthan Royals run machine Jos Buttler in the Indian Premier League ahead of the final against Gujarat Titans.
Buttler blasted the Royals into their first final for 14 years with a scintillating unbeaten 106 off only 60 balls to secure a seven-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in Qualifier 2.
The England wicketkeeper-batter hit six sixes and 10 fours in a masterclass at Narendra Modi Stadium on Friday, taking his tally of centuries for the season to four.
Buttler is only one shy of Chris Gayle's record of scoring six IPL hundreds ahead of the final in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
The 31-year-old is the leading run-scorer in the tournament with 824 from 16 innings at an average of 58.86 and Royals director of cricket Sangakkara has never seen anything like it.
He said: "It's hard to describe what he has done for us this season. I think he started off so well, had a little bit of a flutter at one point in the tournament, but he calmed himself down, had good conversations rather than just training.
"He accepted he's mortal, he's human and he can't have that high level of excellence every single day. And to understand how you kind of reach that level at every game in different stages.
"Some days you have to fight and look ugly, other days your rhythm is there. The reality is you can't fight that condition, but fight what's happening on the day.
"You have to settle into it and build an innings. He can accelerate at any point, has all the strokes and understands the game really well. I can't remember anyone batting this well in the history of the IPL."
Rajasthan have not reached a final since they won the inaugural IPL in 2008, when the late Shane Warne captained them to victory.
Gujarat topped the table in their first IPL season and beat the Royals by seven wickets in Qualifier 1 to move into the final.
David Miller struck a rapid 68 not out in that victory and the South Africa batter says he is reaping the rewards of the Titans putting their faith in him.
He said: "I feel like I am repeating myself. But one thing that changed this season, is that I am playing every game.
"The last four-five years in IPL… I had a bad season in 2016 and then haven't really felt backed at all. That’s the nature of the IPL. There are so many overseas players and only four can play.
"I had to go back and work on my game. Although I felt really good playing for the domestic teams in South Africa, I was looking to find that good nick. That's what happened this season."
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Windies women eye vital win against Bangladesh to keep semi-final hopes alive at T20 World Cup
After an impressive six-wicket win over Scotland, West Indies women will seek to build on that momentum when they take on Bangladesh in a crucial encounter that could define their campaign at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
The Caribbean side will enter Thursday’s contest knowing that another win would keep their semi-final hopes alive, as they currently sit in third position on two points, two behind leaders South Africa and England on four points each.
The first ball is 9:00am Jamaica time.
West Indies’ victory over Scotland was a much-needed confidence boost for the team, especially after a crushing 10-wicket loss to South Africa in their opening match. The win not only lifted their spirits but also boosted their net run rate, a key factor in determining the semi-final spots should multiple teams finish level on points.
Assistant coach Ryan Austin emphasized the Hayley Matthews-led team’s readiness to handle what promises to be a tricky challenge, as Bangladesh bowlers, particularly their spinners, have proven to be formidable opponents.
“The team is pretty prepared. We obviously know that Bangladesh is basically a spin-based unit, but with our philosophies, we are more focused on what we can control. Having said that, we still have that element of power within our batting that could counter the spin as well,” Austin said in a pre-game press conference.
“If you look at the wicket, they are playing pretty slow at the moment. South Africa today (Wednesday) actually had a good total on the wicket, and if you watch how they batted, they actually used their feet a lot to the spin. So we are looking to obviously go into the game with that sort of temperament mindset with respect to their spin bowling attack as well. Sharjah has almost kind of a two-paced kind of wicket because during the day it's very low and slow, but in the evenings it kind of changes and comes alive,” he added.
Austin exuded confidence in his team’s batting prowess, with the likes of Matthews, Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin, and Shemaine Campbelle expected to play pivotal roles, especially with the group being poised for a tight finish.
Though those proverbial big guns are yet to really fire, Austin believes their true potential should come to the fore in Thursday’s game, as well as the decisive fixture against England. West Indies currently have a positive net run rate of 1.154, only bettered by leaders South Africa, who have 1.527.
“If you look at how our group is set up, net run-rate is really going to be a big factor later down, especially, if we win both games against Bangladesh and England. So one of the things that we really have to look at is how we go about executing, especially in this game against Bangladesh. So our game plan is to at least probably both first and then try to get to our target as fast as possible,” Austin reasoned.