Dubai: Islamabad United’s opener Luke Ronchi proved a cool head can be useful as he demolished Karachi Kings with the fastest half-century in the history of Pakistan Super League (PSL) in just 19 balls.
Answering to a query from Gulf News after his unbeaten 94 off just 39 balls with 12 boundaries and five sixes on what had helped him play such a destructive innings, Ronchi explained his philosophy and approach towards batting.
“It feels amazing to go out and do that (break a record) in an innings. It was not a plan to go out and bat that way but by chance, they bowled some balls where you feel comfortable and sort of wanted them to bowl there. This got my momentum going and it reached a point where I felt that I can hit any ball for a four or a six.”
Ronchi’s frankness, unlike most international cricketers, was refreshing. “They bowled some good slow balls and I mistimed some shots. They certainly tried a few different things but I felt pretty comfortable with the way things were going and was confident of what I was doing and I was able to have a lot of fun.”
The splendid timing and even power behind shots surprised everyone. When asked, Ronchi said: “The game starts at 8pm and it is a long day and I try and relax as much as possible and just chill out by not thinking about cricket too much. I believe that if you think too much about the game the whole day your brain will get tired before you can even get to the game. So I turn up with a clear mind and confident of what you are doing and happy in what you are doing and it worked out in the end.”
Ronchi hit three half-centuries so far. His first effort came off just 23 balls, his second fifty against Lahore Qalandars in just 22 balls and then went on to break the record on Sunday. “If you’re nice and relax, and don’t go very emotional about it then your natural abilities come out and you play to your potential,” said Ronchi, who then attributed his calmness to his skipper Misbah Ul Haq. “It flows from him (Misbah), that calmness in him.”
Ronchi then went on to reveal the mood in his team’s dressing room after the win. “Today was a pretty amazing day for us. It is a massive win to get straight into the final. The guys are pretty excited in the change room.”
Ronchi, who will travel to Karachi for the next leg of PSL, wants his team to lift the cup in the final. “It is going to be a massive crowd out there (in Karachi) and hope we don’t play against Karachi (Kings) so we may get support around. It is going to be exciting for the Pakistan Super League and with majority of our team players going there, it makes it more exciting as we have the same group for a long time now.”
