IPL 2022 | Livingstone applauds Bairstow after his match-winning knock

Punjab Kings' (PBKS) swashbuckling batter Liam Livingstone applauded his England teammate, Jonny Bairstow, for playing a match-winning knock against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Friday, May 13, at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai. 

After being put in to bat first, Bairstow got off to a flyer and eventually scored 66 runs off mere 29 balls with the help of four fours and seven sixes. The English batter set the platform, after which the Kings went on to establish a massive target of 210 runs to chase down in 20 overs.

"That's how we want to play our cricket; Jonny was outstanding and set the tone; from then on, we were ahead of the game. It was a chance for myself to get in and assess the conditions a little bit longer than usual. It was nice to knock it around for a little bit before setting a platform to get at the end. Jonny set it up for the rest of the batters, and the way we bowled was exceptional on a very good pitch," Livingstone was quoted as saying.

After Jonny Bairstow got out, Livingstone took charge by scoring a quickfire 42-ball knock of 70 with five fours and four sixes. 

On the other hand, Jonny Bairstow, who won the Player of the Match award, said that he has been enjoying playing in the league.

The Kings' openers cited, "It's one of those days. A couple of those come off, and it's your day. Many quality bowlers in the IPL, and sometimes you've got to try and get them off their lengths (taking on Josh). It's a completely different commodity, playing with England and playing here. Stats would suggest I quite enjoy opening the batting. The bats are very good, I must admit."

Later in the game, Punjab successfully restricted RCB to 155/9 as Kagiso Rabada bowled a smearing spell of three for 21. 

Meanwhile, the all-rounder also praised the bowlers for stepping up and helping the side register the massive victory.

"I still thought we were 10-15 short with the size of the boundary and how good the pitch was; all credit goes to our bowlers. If we get our chance to put the opposition under pressure, then make sure we do that, Jonny did that against one of their best bowlers in the tournament," he concluded.