IPL 2021: What Tyagi did at the end, was something really special, says Shamsi

Rajasthan Royals spinner Tabraiz Shamsi heaped praises on left-arm seamer Kartik Tyagi, saying what he did in the back end of the innings was really special. He added that former South Africa pacer Dale Steyn tweeting about Tyagi's final over meant that the standard of the finish was very high.

Tyagi defended four runs in the final over against Punjab Kings on Tuesday in Dubai. Tyagi sticked to his plan of bowling yorkers and full balls while taking wickets of Nicholas Pooran and Deepak Hooda in the final over to pull off a thrilling two-run heist for Rajasthan.

"It's right up there. You are speaking about me, but I saw a tweet from Dale Steyn. And he has been playing for so long, he has been the best at what he does for so many years. And even he was impressed. So, it just tells you the calibre of the finish. What Tyagi did at the end, was something really special. To get praise from a person like Dale Steyn and I am sure, he has seen a lot more than I have, and for him to say something like that, you can imagine. That was unbelievable," Shamsi was quoted as saying by Khaleej Times on Thursday.

"And for me, personally as well, you know, I have been part of a few close games, but I don't think I have been part of anything like that. We were defending eight from the last two overs with them having so many wickets in hand. As much as you back yourself to win a game from any situation, I think even if we were given one per cent chance of winning that game, I think we got that," added Shamsi.


He believes that delivering in situations like this will help Tyagi grow as a cricketer in future. "Look, anybody that can pull that off obviously has to have nerves of steel and just the belief in themselves. I was just speaking to a couple of guys who said he (Tyagi) basically nails six out of six yorkers. Who in the world can do that, you know? I mean Lasith Malinga is one guy that comes to mind, he has just retired. He is probably your blueprint for yorkers, being one of the best ever in terms of yorkers. So, I think what he executed yesterday (Tuesday), I think it was stunning. That's only going to help him grow."

"We always speak about 'it doesn't really matter what you have done previously, what matters is that the over that you are bowling, or that ball that you have to bowl, and to execute like that, the way he did it, in the last over, it's going to do wonders for his career going forward. Because now he knows, no matter what situation he is in, he is capable of producing something like that. Cricket has a lot to do with belief in your own abilities. I think that's how you win in pressure situations. Like I said, knowing that he has done something like this before, will obviously put him in a very good position if he is in a situation like that moving forward," explained Shamsi.

Asked about how the celebrations were in the dressing room after the win, the 31-year-old said, "Obviously, that sort of a game, if we are all honest, nobody would have thought that such a comeback was possible. You know we all watch a lot of cricket, play a lot of cricket, and it was something that you can't really script. You can't predict that. So, of course, everybody was very happy as you can imagine, you know. The celebrations were good."


"But that says a lot about Rajasthan Royals as a team. There is a consistent mood in the camp, whether we win, whether we lose. We just focus on how we go about our things in terms of our preparations. I think that's the most important thing," signed off Shamsi - IANS