In the movie The 10 Commandments, during that famous scene where the Red Sea parts, the Pharaoh's commander tells him about Moses"He stops us with a pillar of fire, and then he commands the sea to part for him, this man is the Son of God". Yesterday VVS must have wondered the same about a blonde haired, pot bellied, stocky character, and so must have his team mates, who could not contain their enthusiasm. Shane Keith Warne, take a bow sir, you are truly a once in a life time person. And to his team mates he must truly be a Moses, the way he has motivated them, led them, egged them on.
17 runs to win in the final over, just 3 wickets in hand, Deccan Chargers seemed all set to win their first match. Warne's Aussie team mate Symmo comes in to bowl. Earlier Symmo had scored a destructive 100 off just 53 balls, and this seemed to be his day. Or so he must have thought. 3 runs off the first 2 balls. Now Shane Warne on strike. Ball No 3, thwack, over the bowlers head for 4. Target down to 10 off 2 balls, again the match is any one's guess. Ball No 4, Warne lofts it for a 6. The target is down to just 4 off 2 balls, and Warne obliges with a massive 6. Symmo, VVS, Deccan and the entire Rajiv Gandhi Stadium are as shell shocked, as the Pharaoh's soldiers must have been when they saw the Red Sea opening up. One of the greatest escapes in any form of game, Harry Houdini would have nodded approvingly.
The matches in IPL seem to get better. If the match between Chennai Kings and Mumbai Indians, seemed like an action thriller, this one was like one of those suspense thrillers, where things suddenly take a crazy twist in the last hour. Though I doubt if even Alfred Hitchcock or Robert Ludlum, could have scripted such a crazy twist. It is sad that Australian cricket missed Warne's services as a captain. Honestly the way he has motivated a team that had been written off by all and sundry, and not having any Glam Boys, and the way he has led from the front, is the stuff of which heroes are made of. Whatever happens to Rajasthan Royals, they can walk with their heads high, thanks to Warne. After the drubbing they had in the first game at Delhi, no one seemed to give them a ghost of chance. Now with 2 wins out of 3 they are in 4th position.
Warne's captaincy was seen in the early stages too. After Munaf Patel had been clobbered by Gilly for 3 consecutive boundaries, he bought on Yusuf Pathan, who prom ptly pegged back Deccan by getting rid of Gilly and the dangerous Afridi. VVS had also gone to a return catch by Warne. And at 75-3, it seemed advantage Deccan. But then Symmo justifying his high price for the first time, put on a 111 run partnership with Rohit Sharma, who maintained his consistency. In the company of first Sharma and then Arjun Yadav, Symmo played a blinder, hammering the bowlers all over the park, with effortless hits to clear the boundary. Records tumbled as Deccan scored a massive 214 off just 20 overs.
In reply Rajasthan lost Akmal early, but Graeme Smith and Yusuf Pathan put on a 98 run partnership, which laid a solid foundation. Smith played a good anchoring role, as Yusuf, quite often in the shadow of his more famous brother Irfan, played a brilliant innings of 61 off just 28 balls. However Yusuf holed out and soon, the hero of their earlier match, Shane Watson, was bowled by Afridi. A tentative Smith and a Md Kaif, who was not exactly a blaster were at the crease. Kaif however shook off the jitters, and took on the bowling, especially Symmo, whom he clattered for 2 6's. Smith meanwhile was going steadily, scoring at every opportunity,. The two put on 60 before Kaif was caught by Symmo, and Smith feel soon, both of them to Afridi, bowling a brilliant spell. R.P.Singh bowled a brilliant 18th over, without conceding any runs, and both Jadeja and Salunkhe were out, and at 196/7 with 17 runs needed in the last over, the match seemed to be over for Rajasthan. But then as they say in cricket, it aint over till the last bowl is bowled. Till then cherish the memories of Warnie, and feel privileged, to have seen this man live in action on TV. There never will be another Shane Warne for sure.