Follow UsAlbert Einstein defined insanity as "doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
However, for Vyshak Vijaykumar, it was the exact opposite.
He did the same thing over and over again, and the result he expected was the same thing: cut the power game of the batters and keep the runs down to a bare minimum. More importantly, to not give away boundaries.
When Vyshak came on to bowl, Gujarat Titans (GT) needed 74 of the last six overs. If we are to go by what happened in the game between Delhi Capitals (DC) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on March 24 (Monday), this target might have seemed like a cakewalk, given that the Titans had eight wickets in hand.
Vyshak's strategy was simple. He kept bowling wide to the batters, which took away their power game. He bowled the majority of his deliveries to left-handed Sherfane Rutherford. The batter tried everything to counter this strategy. He gave himself room, tried to swing, and looked to get as close to the ball as possible.
The field was also set in a way that, even if the batter connected, it may not necessarily fetch him a boundary. Coming in as an impact player, Vyshak conceded just five of his first over. That seemed to have rubbed off well on Marco Jansen, who conceded just eight in the next over.
The equation came down to 62 off four overs. Despite conceding three wides - all outside off - in his next over, Vyshak still kept it down to five.
The last three overs cost just 18 runs. GT lost all momentum, and the game tilted towards Punjab Kings (PBKS), given that the four overs before Vyshak's first over yielded 17, 17, 14, and 17.
It took a while for Rutherford to get a couple of boundaries — a couple of slices past third man and backward point — but it seemed to be too late. 18 came off Vyshak's third over — the penultimate one of the match — yet GT had 27 to win off the final over.
Arshdeep Singh held his nerve to help PBKS over the line, but Vyshak did the damage. Rutherford came in as an impact player for GT, and while he did make an impact with a 28-ball 46, it was Vyshak who stole the limelight.
"Really happy for him. He is putting in the hard yards in the practice, was executing the yorkers really well in practice, and the results showed in the game as well. If you want to miss, miss on the wider side and not on the stumps. Even if it slips, even if it's a full-toss, it won't be easy for them to hit as it's very far from their reach," Arshdeep said of Vyshak's gameplay.
The 28-year-old pacer from Karnataka did not get his fair share of chances with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), for whom he played 11 matches across the last two seasons, he may have finally found a team for whom he might turn up a little more. If his exploits in this match are anything to go by, delivering despite taking the pitch out of the equation, the pacer might go on to win many more matchs for PBKS this season.
PBKS acquiring his services for INR 1.8 crore in the IPL 2025 auction could very well turn out to be a bargain. He may not be in the best of forms in the domestic circuit, but the IPL could give him the lease of life he needs.