IPL 2023: I was trying to get my variations right – Nathan Ellis after match-winning spell against RR

Punjab Kings fast bowler Nathan Ellis revealed that he was trying to get his variations right after bowling a match-winning spell of 4-30 against Rajasthan Royals at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati on Wednesday. It was a batting-friendly pitch but the Australian was the pick of the bowlers as he made great use of his cross-seam deliveries to savor success against RR.

Ellis accounted for Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, Devdutt Padikkal, and Riyan Parag in his fine spell. In fact, the pacer had figures of 4-14 in his first three overs but he was taken for 16 runs by Dhrun Jurel and Shimron Hetmyer in his final over, which spoiled his overall match figures a tad.

However, the Australian was awarded the Player of the Match for his fine spell of bowling as he played a key role in PBKS’ five-run win against RR.

Nathan Ellis said in the post-match presentation, “Just stoked to get the win, pleased to get some awards but from a team’s point of view nice to get that win. In T20 every ball counts, staying in the moment is really the key. When I was bowling in the backend, I was trying to get my variations right and calculate what the best ball is at that time. For me it’s cross-seam and it worked out really well tonight.”

On the other hand, Sam Curran conceded 44 runs in his quota of four overs but he was able to defend 16 runs against Dhruv Jurel and Shimron Hetmyer, who both were going all guns blazing at the fag end.

Curran said after the win, “I think when it comes to this situation, it is do or die. If you know the yorker, you got to use it. Some days it would work and some days it won’t. They changed their ball at the end of their innings. But we weren’t able to. I was with Prabhsimran four years back with Punjab. Happy to sit in the dugout when it comes to batting. All that matters is we won. Amazingly hard to bowl with the wet ball. It is incredibly hard to hold the seam. It is naturally hard to bowl a yorker with a cross seam.”

Punjab Kings will next face Sunrisers Hyderabad at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad on Sunday.