Nineteen-year-old Manish Pandey was a largely unknown figure in cricketing circles before a stupendous knock changed all that in Supersport Park, Centurion on May 21, 2009. That was the day on which Pandey became not only the first Indian batsman to score a century in the Indian Premier League, but also made his way in to the record books as the first from his country to score a ton in Twenty20 cricket.
Yes, Pandey did get a life when Deccan Chargers' pace bowler RP Singh dropped him off Ryan Harris when the batsman has only scored 2 runs, but from that momenet, the young batsman pulled out all the shots from his repertoire as he helped Royal Challengers Bangalore post a competitive total. It is also prudent to remember that this was the first meaningful opportunity that Pandey had got to show what he has as he was promoted to open the innings in place of the out-of-form Robin Uthappa.
Life is all about making the most of opportunites, and Pandey certainly grabbed his with both hands and the bat to ensure that not only did the cricketing world took note of him, but his century also helped RCB end the round-robin stage of IPL-2 placed third on the points table. It is important to note here that in his earlier outings for RCB, Pandey batted lower down the order and had to go full throttle from the first delivery he faced.
Coming back to Pandey's knock against the Chargers, he played with clinical precision and after being dropped on 2, there was not one single false shot for the remainder of his unbeaten knock of 114 (73 balls, 10 boundaries and four sixes). He hit shots all over the ground, and except for Andrew Symonds, no other Chargers' bowler was able to keep him quiet. The hallmark of his knock was his strength on the on-side as he kept putting away balls with ease that were bowled not only on the leg stump, but also the ones that has to be fetched from the off-stump. Another notable trait was the confidence that he showed at the crease despite being a novice at the game's highest level. Pandey's trademark shot seems to be the half-flick, half-sweep shot that he uses to such good effect.
