Jonny Bairstow finally turned up at the IPL 2022 – after 8 matches though. But Punjab Kings won’t mind that as the Englishman took down the Royal Challengers Bangalore bowlers in a do-or-die encounter and gave his side an upper hand early in the contest.
And although he had made 56 off 40 in the previous game versus Rajasthan Royals, this was more indeed a Jonny Bairstow innings, one where he absolutely smashes the leather out of the ball.
Bairstow’s assault started as early as in the first over, bowled by Glenn Maxwell. Introduced as a match-up for Shikhar Dhawan, Maxwell was lofted down the ground for a six by Bairstow.
The right-hander then tore into his Ashes rival, Josh Hazlewood, slamming the Australian seamer for two sixes and two fours; his ability to perhaps premeditate the hard and short lengths from Hazlewood stood out as he clattered him with disdainful pull shots. Another pull six by Bairstow came off a short ball from Siraj.
Dhawan’s dismissal at the other end didn’t have any effect on Bairstow’s gung-ho approach; in fact, he thumped down even harder. The last over of the powerplay, became a nightmare for Siraj as Bairstow took a full toll of the out of form seamer, whacking him for three sixes and a boundary in a forgettable 23-run over; Siraj wasn’t given any over after that having leaked 36 in 2 overs.
With the last six of Siraj’s over, Bairstow brought up his fifty in just 22 balls in what was a very typical Jonny Bairstow T20 knock. PBKS raced to 83/3 at the end of the powerplay. Bairstow had put PBKS in command and set for Liam Livingstone to take the total over 200 before Shahbaz Ahmed got the opener out.
Fans really enjoyed this mauling of the RCB bowlers by Jonny Bairstow. Netizens trolled RCB and hailed Bairstow for this entertaining ride.
Here are some of the best reactions to Jonny Bairstow’s sizzling knock:
There’s nobody in the world like Jonny Bairstow when he hits top level. Fast starts, fast middle overs, pace spin everything will go. That’s why Punjab backed backed and backed him
— Dave (@CricketDave27) May 13, 2022
Shahbaz with bat, Shahbaz with ball in IPL 2022 for RCB – gets Bairstow for 66 from 29.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) May 13, 2022
Openers are always Blockbuster to watch when in full flow
#bairstow
— Amrit Raj (@Singh_Amrit_Raj) May 13, 2022
Team jersey doesn’t matter for Jonny bairstow,he will see RCB , he will smash!
— Akshat (@AkshatOM10) May 13, 2022
Make Jonny Bairstow play with the straighter bat. Fullish ball isn’t a bad option
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) May 13, 2022
Jonny Bairstow exhibiting his class tonight, what a start.
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) May 13, 2022
Mayank Agarwal is a such a selfless soul, sacrificed his opening position for Bairstow, always makes me realize how Shreyas Iyer never wanted to compromise with his no. 3 position for team’s sake instead prioritised statpadding at 120 SR
— Samarth (@bccinl) May 13, 2022
Prayer Circle:
Wicket
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddaI_vohraa) May 13, 2022
‘‘Johnny Bairstow just smacked the shit out of me’’ #IPL2022 pic.twitter.com/WJsfpXvapO
— Charlíe (@sraknet1) May 13, 2022
Anna doing captaincy for the time being
— Abhishek Ojha (@vicharabhio) May 13, 2022
. The wicket of Bairstow was the result.What if Punjab had Jason Roy and play him with Bairstow at top?
— Afsha (@AfshaCricket) May 13, 2022
Also Read: Will MS Dhoni Play In IPL 2023? Sunil Gavaskar Answers
