21 May,2011 08:18 AM IST | | Ashwin Ferro
Deccan Chargers' pace ace hopes to shoot Kings XI Punjab in helpful bowling conditions
Deccan Chargers pace ace Dale Steyn threw down the gauntlet yesterday when he wrote on social networking side Twitter: "Ok so Dharamsala is beautiful, but if the pitch says anything like the nets did 2day, there could be a fatality."
The speedster was referring to the mouth-watering prospect of bowling on the pacy strip at the HPCA Stadium here today against the Kings XI Punjab.
The windy conditions and possibility of light showers will only add to the lethality of the deadly speedster. Besides, Steyn has had quite an average outing by his own standards, in the fourth edition of the T20 league (see box) with 13 wickets in 11 appearances so far.
And finally, the obvious motivation for the 27-year-old fast bowler will be to come out all guns blazing on the morrow to not only make amends for his average show but also to help the team bow out with a bang given this is their last outing in IPL-IV having failed to qualify for the play-off stages.
It's no wonder then that Chargers' new skipper, Australian Cameron White, replacing Sri Lankan Kumar Sangakkara, who has left for national duty, was quite excited with the conditions here being to the liking of his pace ace.
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"The pitch looks to be nice and pacy and should also offer some good bounce and movement for the ball too given the windy conditions. It's a kind of wicket that Dale Steyn should love to bowl on," said White.
Steyn though went wicketless the last time these two teams clashed on April 16. But then that game was in Deccan's home territory, while this one is on Punjab's home ground. Incidentally, the conditions are also quite similar to the ones back in Steyn's home country too, as White explained.
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"The conditions like altitude, pitch etc are quite similar to that at The Wanderers (in South Africa). So, Dale should enjoy bowling here," he said.
Punjab skipper Adam Gilchrist was obviously not too impressed with the fast bowler's tweet. "I believe he (Steyn) has tweeted about injuring someone or something, so good luck to him, but simply bowling on a fast wicket does not ensure success.
I've lived in Perth (one of the fastest wickets in the world) for 15 years and I've seen quite a few fast bowlers getting stuck in there. Besides, we know the conditions well too as our fast bowlers have bowled quite a bit here," said Gilchrist, who instead went on to praise Steyn's pace partner Ishant Sharma.
"Not discounting Deccan's pace bowling however because Ishant Sharma has done quite well in this tournament. It has been almost like a resurrection for him," said Gilchrist.
Dale Steyn in IPL-IV
2/18 vs Rajasthan Royals on April 9
1/33 vs Kolkata Knight Riders on April 11
3-24 vs Kings XI Bangalore on April 14
0-24 vs Kings XI Punjab on April 16
0/24 vs Delhi Daredevils on April 19
0/39 vs Mumbai Indians on April 24
3-16 vs Kochi Tuskers Kerala on April 27
1/31 vs Kolkata Knight Riders on May 3
2/24 vs Delhi Daredevils on May 5
0/30 vs Pune Warriors on May 10
1/23 vs Pune Warriors on May 16.
