"Jonny came and took their class" - Aakash Chopra lauds Bairstow's match-winning knock in PBKS-RCB IPL 2022 clash

Aakash Chopra has lauded Jonny Bairstow for playing a blazing match-winning knock in Friday's (May 13) IPL 2022 encounter between the Punjab Kings (PBKS) and the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

Bairstow smoked 66 runs off just 29 balls as PBKS posted a mammoth total of 209/9 on the board. Their bowlers then restricted RCB to 155/9 to win the match by 54 runs.

While reviewing the RCB-PBKS clash in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra picked Bairstow's knock as a game-defining performance. The former Indian batter observed:

"RCB won the toss and elected to field but after that, Jonny came and took their class, how well he batted. 66 runs off 29 balls, four fours and seven sixes, which means there are more sixes than fours. A 'Bairstorm' had come, he hit a lot."

The cricketer-turned-commentator pointed out that there were question marks about Bairstow's batting position for PBKS after the IPL 2022 auction. Chopra explained:

"It is very interesting that when you retained Mayank and picked up Shikhar Dhawan in the marquee set, your two openers were confirmed, after that when you had picked Jonny in the auction, there would have been a question in your mind that where will you bat him."

Chopra added that Bairstow has come into his own since being promoted to the top of the batting order. He elaborated:

"So he was made to bat at No. 4 and then No. 3 but the runs were not coming. So he was made to open as the final throw of the dice and once he was made open, he has not looked back, he hit in the last match also and even more in this match."

Punjab Kings skipper Mayank Agarwal demoted himself down the order to allow Jonny Bairstow to play at his favored batting position. Although the big-hitting Yorkshireman managed just one run as an opener against the Gujarat Titans (GT), he smashed two consecutive half-centuries thereafter.

---

"Josh Hazlewood's length suits Jonny Bairstow's style of play" - Aakash Chopra

Jonny Bairstow was awarded the Player of the Match [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra highlighted the special treatment meted out to Josh Hazlewood by Bairstow, saying:

"We have not seen Josh Hazlewood being hit like this in ages but Hazlewood's length suits Bairstow's style of play. It is slightly risky because you hit with the horizontal bat, it is very difficult to hit a ball of that length, and he was not hitting fours but sixes."

The 44-year-old concluded by observing that RCB bowlers were taken aback by Bairstow's assault. Chopra stated:

"It was a long time since we saw such power play in the powerplay. He set such a fantastic platform that the RCB players were slightly stunned. They tried their best, tried to dismiss him but Jonny Bairstow batted in a different fashion."

Jonny Bairstow was particularly aggressive against Hazlewood and Mohammed Siraj. The duo were taken to the cleaners as they conceded 100 runs in the six overs they bowled in total.