Kolkata Knight Riders rookie pacer Ankit Rajpoot said it was a deliberate ploy from their captain Gautam Gambhir to employ five close-in fielders for rival skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni during the IPL match between two teams.
Dhoni was left stifled managing only 8 off 22 balls when rain stopped play.
“Ball was turning and spinners were getting a lot of help. So we thought of setting an attacking field against Mahibhai,” said Rajpoot.
With Piyush Chawla (2/21) in the middle of a fine spell, Dhoni walked out with 74/4 in 10.3 overs as Gambhir renewed his spin strategy against the struggling Indian limited overs captain.
In a move that reminded one of their first leg match in Pune, Gambhir brought himself at silly point, added two slips, a short leg and a short cover as the move certainly worked as Dhoni failed to get the scoreboard ticking.
“We wanted to create pressure and get him out early to brighten our prospects. Left-handers have it easy, while Mahibhai being a right-hander we wanted to go for an attacking field.”
Failing to break free against the spinners, Supergiants were 103/6 in 17.4 overs when rain halted play as the target was revised to 66 from nine overs on Duckworth-Lewis method.
The wicket was offering turn and keeping low but Rajpoot said it was still good for the batsmen who applied themselves.
