Shakib Al Hasan, IPL 2018
Shakib Al Hasan (Credits: BCCI)

Shakib Al Hasan, on Friday (May 25), expressed delight after Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) beat his former side Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the second qualifier to make it to the grand finale.

The Kane Williamson-led side beat the Knight Riders by 14 runs to end their four-match losing streak and set up a date with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the title-decider.

Asked to bat first, they rode on Rashid Khan’s whirlwind knock to post a challenging 174 for seven. Shikhar Dhawan and Wriddhiman Saha added 57 runs for the first wicket.

However, Kuldeep Yadav dismissed Dhawan and Williamson inside an over to put the Knight Riders on top. In the 17th over, they were reeling at 124 for five when Rashid walked into bat. The 19-year-old struck 34 off just 10 balls to guide the Sunrisers to a good total.

IPL 2018: SRH Gave Me the Opportunity to Play All Games - Shakib Al Hasan

In reply, the Knight Riders were off to an electric start. Sunil Narine and Chris Lynn started the chase on a stunning note by adding 45 runs in 19 balls.

At 87 for one in the ninth over, the Knight Riders were cruising. However, the game turned on its head when a brilliant throw from Rashid from the boundary lines resulted in Nitish Rana getting run out.

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Rashid Khan
Credits: BCCI

Rashid then accounted for Chris Lynn, Robin Uthappa, and Andre Russell to add more pressure on the hosts.

The Sunrisers went on to clinch the game – to set up a date with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the final on Sunday at Wankhade.

Shakib also made a useful contribution with both bat and ball. The ex-Knight Riders star scored 28 and picked up the crucial wicket of Dinesh Karthik.

Speaking after the game, he sounded delighted after making his third IPL final.

The Bangladeshi star Shakib also thanked the team management for showing immense faith in him.

“Feels great. Third IPL final for me. The franchise gave me the opportunity to play all games and treated me so well. There were some games we didn’t do well, but all in all a great tournament for SRH. We always knew these things happen in T20 and momentum can change in 2-3 balls. We had to hold our nerves, and we got the experience from the other day (1st Qualifier vs. CSK), and held our nerves today,” Shakib said after the game

 

“Carlos will be happy because he might have thought he was responsible for the loss against CSK, even though he really wasn’t, and might have taken it personally and the way he came back today was terrific. CSK are a great side and hopefully it will be a fantastic final on Sunday. In the middle overs, when Rashid and I were bowling, that was the turning point for us when we piled on the wickets and hardly gave any runs,” added Shakib who won two titles with the Knight Riders.

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