Mccullum returns to the venue of his super knock in the 2008 ipl opener. Brother Nathan and Otago teammate is hoping for an encore vs RCB today
Mccullum returns to the venue of his super knock in the 2008 ipl opener. Brother Nathan and Otago teammate is hoping for an encore vsu00a0RCB today
It was almost 18 months ago that Brendon McCullum announced the arrival of the Twenty20 storm at the Chinnaswamy Stadium here with a swashbuckling unbeaten 158 off just 73 balls for Kolkata Knight Riders against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the inaugural match of the Indian Premier League.
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Brendon McCullum blazes away during his unbeaten 158 for Kolkata Knight Riders against Bangalore Royal Challengers in the inaugural IPL Twenty20 match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in April 2008. PIC/SURESH KK |
And as Brendon was feasting on anything thrown at him by the RCB bowlers, his elder brother Nathan was enjoying his knock back home in Dunedin. "I was home watching it on TV and it was pretty exciting. He did very well, smashed it all over the park," Nathan, who along with Brendon arrived in the Garden City yesterday, told MiD DAY ahead of Otago Volts' practice session.
Repeat itNo wonder then, the Volts, who face RCB in a do-or-die group clash of the inaugural Champions League Twenty20, would be hoping for an encore from Brendon tonight.
"We just hope he can repeat it tomorrow," Nathan, an off-spinner who is no mug with the willow, said. "He's pretty excited about playing here once again. He's played here only once and he's done well? So he is very excited as much as the rest of us. We are really looking forward to it and can't wait to play tomorrow."
While both RCB and Otago Volts have lost their opening encounters to Cape Cobras and the side that ends up on the losing side will have to pack their bags for the rest of the tournament.
So, as one ponders over the fate of the game, one can't help but think that it could be McCullum Junior who could emerge as a decisive factor. If he is able to repeat even a part of the heroics he produced the last time he played here, then RCB could be in real danger of being eliminated earlier than expected.
What doesn't augur well for Anil Kumble's side is that such cyclonic knocks is not a one-off when it comes to Brendon's batting. "He's played quite a few knocks like that at different times in his career. He played one for us that helped Otago win the one-day final. He's got it all there and he always has a chance of playing an innings like that. So hopefully he can do that here again tomorrow," Nathan said.
