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Former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan lauded young Australian and Delhi Capitals (DC) batter Jake Fraser McGurk for his knock against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Delhi on Saturday, pointing out how he is able to hit the balls outside the off-stumps for huge sixes using his sheer power.
Fraser McGurk continued to light up the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, smashing the fastest half-century for the franchise in tournament history on Saturday. In the game, McGurk smashed 65 in 18 balls, with five fours and seven sixes. His runs came at a strike rate of 361.11. Speaking on his knock, Zaheer said on JioCinema, "Today, the line was way outside the off-stump. He has shown that he can open up that area as well and put bowlers under pressure, especially when he is able to generate power on his shots on the back foot to get the ball over the ropes. I mean, everyone's noticing his talent and keeping an eye on him, and how he is going to evolve with experience." A key highlight of his knock saw him take down spinner Washington Sundar with three fours and three sixes in the third over. This is the fastest fifty for DC in IPL history, overtaking Chris Morris's 17 ball half-century in 2016 against the Gujarat Lions. This is also the joint-third fastest IPL fifty. The fastest-ever fifty in IPL history is owned by Rajasthan Royals' Yashasvi Jaiswal, who smashed a 13-ball fifty against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) last year. McGurk's fifty is the fastest of this season. In three IPL matches so far, McGurk has scored 140 runs at an average of 46.66 and a strike rate of 222.22. His best score is 65. He scored a knock of 55 against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in his IPL debut. In the match, SRH was put on the field first by DC. Head (89 in 32 balls, with 11 fours and six sixes) and Abhishek (46 in 12 balls, with two fours and six sixes) put on an explosive stand of 131 runs in 6.2 overs. Later, contributions from Shahbaz Ahmed (59* in 29 balls, with two fours and five sixes) and Nitish Kumar (37 in 27 balls, with two fours and two sixes) came in handy to take SRH to 266/7 in their 20 overs. Kuldeep Yadav was the pick of the bowlers for DC with 4/55. Mukesh Kumar and Axar Patel also got a six. In the run chase, DC managed to keep up with SRH's run rate in the first half of their innings despite losig wickets. Knocks from Jake Fraser McGurk (65 in 18 balls, five fours and seven sixes) and Abhishek Porel (42 in 22 balls, with seven fours and a six) kept the Capitals alive. However, after their dismissal, DC lost momentum and despite skipper Rishabh Pant's fighting (44 in 35 balls, with five fours and a six), the Capitals were restricted to 199 in 19.1 overs.T Natrajan (4/19) was the pick of the bowlers for SRH. Head took home the 'Player of the Match' award. SRH is now in second place in the table with five wins and two losses, giving them total of 10 points. DC is at seventh spot with three wins and five losses, giving them six points. (ANI)
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