Eoin Morgan slammed by netizens for poor use of Kuldeep Yadav despite Super Over win

Kolkata locked horns with Hyderabad in the first match of the Dream11 IPL 2020 double-header on Sunday. The contest between the two sides turned out to be a humdinger as the winner was decided courtesy of a Super Over after both teams ended on level terms at the end of 40 overs.

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Eoin Morgan bashed by netizens for underutilising Kuldeep Yadav

Having won the toss, David Warner invited Eoin Morgan's Kolkata to bat first in Abu Dhabi. Kolkata posted a total of 163/5 on the board riding on the back of a 37-ball 36 by Shubman Gill and a 23-ball 34 by skipper Eoin Morgan. Dinesh Karthik also chipped in with a quickfire cameo of 29 off 14 balls to guide his side to a competitive total.

In response, Hyderabad sprung a surprise by promoting Kane Williamson at the top of the order to open alongside Jonny Bairstow. The move paid off as the Men in Orange got off to a blistering start and raced to 58/0 at the end of the powerplay. However, just after the powerplay, Williamson was dismissed by Lockie Ferguson, who was playing his first game in the Dream11 IPL 2020 season. 

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After Lockie Ferguson helped Kolkata get the first breakthrough, the Men in Purple were relentless in their attack as they kept bagging wickets at regular intervals and stopped Hyderabad from mounting a challenge. In the end, 18 runs were required off the last over and it was the injured Andre Russell who was asked to bowl the final six balls by skipper Eoin Morgan.

Eoin Morgan's decision to go with Andre Russell, who was clearly struggling, left many baffled. The Englishman was subjected to a lot of criticism for asking an injured Russell to bowl the last over when he could have picked either Kuldeep Yadav or Shivam Mavi.

Kuldeep Yadav, who was included in the playing XI for this match, had bowled decently giving away just 18 runs in his three overs. However, Eoin Morgan opted to snub the leg-spinner as he went ahead with the Caribbean all-rounder. The Twitterati were left miffed with Morgan for underutilising Yadav and persisting with Russell, who was having a difficult time. Several reactions poured in as fans as well as cricket pundits slammed the newly appointed Kolkata skipper for his bizarre tactics.

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Kolkata eventually went on to win the game after restricting Hyderabad to just two runs in the Super Over. Lockie Ferguson bowled a brilliant over, claiming the wickets of David Warner and Abdul Samad in the Super Over and giving away just two runs. Eoin Morgan and Dinesh Karthik ensured that Kolkata got over the line with two balls to spare.

Updated Dream11 IPL 2020 points table

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SOURCE: KOLKATA IPL TEAM INSTAGRAM