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Galloping hares and timely time-outs

Plays of the Day from the IPL game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab at the Chinnaswamy Stadium

Plays of the Day from the IPL game between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab
Bisla who?
Manvinder Bisla made 2 off six balls against Delhi Daredevils, so the question from a clueless spectator was one most fans at the Chinnaswamy Stadium would have had. They knew soon enough, though, for after a streaky four against a Dale Steyn lifter, Bisla drove Praveen Kumar to the cover boundary and cracked Jacques Kallis for a flat six over point. He hit the innings' first eleven boundaries and had scored 75 out of Punjab's 129 by the time he was dismissed.
Ouch, ouch
Anil Kumble has often bowled despite pain during his days as India's leading bowler and Ravi Bopara tested if that fighting spirit still burns in retirement. He smashed a ball back at Kumble who got his body behind the ball to prevent a certain boundary. Bopara drilled the next one again back at Kumble, who once again stuck his hand out to take the pace off a scorcher. This time he was in pain and needed the physio's attention.
Late starter
Bopara was getting edgy. It was already the ninth over and he had faced only 17 balls and scored 10. His fiercest shots had been thwarted by Kumble, who was prepared to bowl after receiving treatment for his hand. Bopara decided to go aerial this time, charging Kumble and depositing him over the long-on boundary. It kick started an innings during which Bopara would win the Orange Cap, only to lose it to Jacques Kallis before the evening was over.
Hare and faster hare
Kallis was on 27 off 24 balls when Manish Pandey's dismissal brought Robin Uthappa to the crease. He unleashed an assault so fearsome that he needed only 16 deliveries to overtake Kallis, who had moved on to 44 off 36 balls by that time. Uthappa moved ahead of his partner with a flick to the square-leg boundary off Sreesanth, who was so disoriented after conceding 24 runs off five balls that he thought the over was completed and had begun to walk away to his fielding position.
Time-out
Most teams have opted to let the time-out be taken by default at the end of the stipulated interval - between overs six and eight for the bowling team, and between 11 and 16 for the batting side. Not today. Uthappa had been dismissed off the last ball of the 14th over, Virat Kohli had already walked in, and Kumble was standing a yard or two inside the boundary, frantically signalling for a time-out.
The umpires seemed to decide it was too late to interrupt play, and gave him the interval after the 15th over was completed. Kumble strode purposefully out on to the field, followed by Ray Jennings, Mark Boucher, Eoin Morgan and Rahul Dravid. Discussions followed and what was said worked. Bangalore needed 55 off 30 balls when play resumed, Kallis and Kohli finished it in 23.
Mismatch of the day
Several IPL matches have instances of a legendary cricketer taking a novice apart. Adam Gilchrist did it to Sudeep Tyagi in Chennai and today Kallis picked on obscure Punjab left-armer Bipul Sharma. Bangalore needed 34 off 18 balls when Kallis decided Sharma had to go. He launched three massive sixes into the ecstatic fans beyond the deep midwicket boundary and ended the over with a cut to the point fence. Kallis had reduced the equation to 11 off 12 and the contest was over.

George Binoy is a senior sub-editor at Cricinfo