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The Punjab Kings (PBKS) scripted history by achieving the highest successful chase in T20 cricket, outplaying Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) formidable total of 261 at the Eden Gardens on Friday, April 26. In the aftermath of this record-breaking feat, KKR's assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate urged his bowling unit to take on the challenge and find innovative ways to counter the batting onslaught.
The ongoing IPL 2024 season has witnessed a batting revolution, with teams breaching the 200-run barrier on multiple occasions. In the recent contest, KKR posted a giant total, courtesy of blistering knocks from Sunil Narine (71 off 32) and Phil Salt (75 off 37).
However, Punjab openers Prabhsimran Singh (54 off 20) and Jonny Bairstow (108* off 48) provided a brilliant start, before Shashank Singh (68* off 28) joined the party to help PBKS chase down the target with eight wickets and eight balls to spare.
Addressing the bowlers' difficulty, ten Doeschate acknowledged the challenging circumstances but urged them to find a way to counter the batting onslaught.
"There are two ways you can look at it. You can step back and say 'Oh it's unfair, we are bowling machines' or you can say 'We are going to find a way, we are going to be a point of difference compared to other teams', 'we are gonna try new things', 'we are gonna embrace the challenge'. Yes, it's going to be tough, but you got to find innovative and new ways for the next four weeks at least, it (this season) is going to be there that long, so no point crying about it," said Ten Doeschate at the post-match press conference.
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The impact player has had a big part: Ryan ten Doeschate
The Dutch all-rounder recognized the impact of the new 'Impact Player' rule, which has revolutionized batting approaches.
"The impact player has had a big part in how the guys go about scoring. The game is almost unrecognizable from ten years ago when you used to get past 160, you could pack your bag and feel that you'd win the game. Now you need 160 before the 13th over to get to a good score," he added.
Also read: Sam Curran opens up on PBKS' record-breaking win over KKR
Ten Doeschate emphasized the need for bowlers to think out of the box and constantly adapt their strategies.
"Set the off-side field, dragged him across, and then fired one at leg stump. You have to come up with innovative ways. You have to keep changing, literally ball by ball. Don't think you can bowl two balls the same, I don't think you can bowl bowlers back to back anymore unless they have a grip on the game. It's all in the batter's favor, the challenge for the bowlers to punch back is there," he concluded.
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