Kane Williamson opened due to hamstring injury: Muttiah Muralitharan

Sunrisers Hyderabad bowling coach Muttiah Muralitharan stated the reason behind Kane Williamson swapping batting spots with skipper David Warner in yesterday’s IPL match against the Kolkata Knight Riders. The reason behind that, according to the legendary former Sri Lankan off-spinner, was that Williamson underwent a fitness test before the game and was struggling on the field throughout because of a hamstring strain. 

The New Zealand skipper actually did better than expected in the opening slot, scoring a 19-ball 29 and providing his team the exact start they were looking for.

“We decided to (open with him) because of the injury,” Muralitharan said after the game. “He was finding it difficult to run 2s and 3s. We thought this was the best opportunity, because he is playing really well, to use him in the powerplay, give us a good total so that it’s easier for us to win. He did his job but at the end of the day it was a tied match and it happens in T20. We tried hard but nothing went our way.”

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Muralitharan also spoke about the decision to send Abdul Samad ahead of the likes of Williamson or Manish Pandey after the fall of David Warner’s wicket in the super over. He said, “Warner and Samad were the last batsmen who were out in the middle. They were hitting the ball, the other batsmen got out and were staying in the dressing room for a long time. So it was better to send the batsmen on form but it didn’t click. Ferguson bowled two good balls and they got out. Sometimes everything we do goes right, sometimes it doesn’t. That’s why the game is beautiful.”

The ploy to send Abdul Samad in the super over did not pay off for SRH

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Even though SRH now have only three wins from nine games in the season, Muralitharan is still optimistic of his side putting up a fight for the final playoff berth which he believes can be secured with seven wins. “It’s all about winning a game and getting the momentum and pushing for 3-4 wins,” he said. “We have done it in the past. It’s not a miracle or something. We got 5 games, if we win at least 4 games we can go through. Our NRR is very handy. I think this year one team will go through with seven wins. So definitely we will fight for that.”