Friday, April 19, 2013

A Repeat Script and a Big Bluff


The script for the 24th match of IPL6 on 18/4/2013 between CSK and DD was broadly the same as for the last match between RR and MI, with the difference that in this match the pre-match favourites were the winners while in the previous match it was the other way round. Only slight variation was in the first ten overs of both the matches.

During CSK batting, fixing was clearly visible through session scoring. Having scored 48/1 in first 7 overs, CSK put breaks on scoring till the 10th over to be 60/1, and start hitting boundaries as soon as the 11th over starts. Why did it happen so? To manipulate the session score in 0-10 overs session such that in the end it was less than the session score on offer at any point during this session. This in turn makes all the punters lose who would have been expecting (a normal expectation) and betting for CSK to score at least 60 plus or more runs in first ten overs (that include 6 power-play overs), with only one wicket down. Brisk scoring in subsequent overs ensured the good overall score as was required by the script.

After 2nd wicket was down, Dhoni walked in promoting himself in the batting order. Whenever Dhoni promotes himself, he succeeds, as if things were in his hands. Wasn't anything different this time, Dhoni helped by lose balls and dropped chances as usual.

CSK score 169/4 in 20 overs, having been 160/2 at the end of 19 overs. The odds were 1.4 in f/o CSK at the end of 19 overs, and when DD resumed their batting to chase, the same had gone up to 1.54 for no apparent reason. No CSK bowler had got injured, and nothing had happened for the pitch to ease out. Sehwag hits a crisp six in the first over and the odds shoot up to more than 1.8. Appeared DD were on course for a successful chase, with the three most explosive batsmen at the top of their batting line-up.

The six by Sehwag and shooting up of odds soon turned out to be double bluff, one on the field and one off the field. DD had lost 2 wickets before the 2nd over ended, and the match was all over when Sehwag was out in 5.1 overs with score at 30/4. Once again, Sehwag chose to get out just after loss of big wicket of Jayawardene. Punters backing Delhi after their consecutive 5 losses and earnestly expecting law of averages to catch up, and buoyed up by that six from Sehwag, had absolutely no place to hide as early as after the 5th over.

The early collapse of DD must have also helped the fixers to make a killing in 0-6 overs session of this second batting. After that 1st over and with Sehwag and Warner on the crease, majority of punters must have put their money on the runs to be scored as on offer, and would have continued to do so throughout, till the fifth over with Sehwag still there with Jayawardene. As it turned out, the session score in the end at 32/4  was less than the minimum on offer at any point during this session.

The Umpiring errors and suicidal run out of Mendis played their part.










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