KKR v CSK talking points: Ravindra Jadeja’s nightmare, Shubman Gill’s class, DK’s captaincy

It was billed as a battle between a supremely confident Chennai Super Kings batting lineup and the very effective bowling unit of Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on Thursday, and, as it turned out, it was the hosts who triumphed in match No 33 of IPL 2018 with a clinical all-round display.

CSK’s winning run since their comeback has been fashioned mainly by their batting lineup but worries over their fielding and bowling unit have been creeping up slowly and steadily and what MS Dhoni saw from that perspective in a convincing six-wicket defeat in Kolkata wouldn’t have pleased him too much.

Here are the talking points from KKR’s convincing win.

Shubman Gill arrives in style

One of the aspects that made KKR an intriguing side to follow before the season started, was their strategy to go big on three young players who created a reputation for themselves during India’s title-winning, unbeaten run at the Under-19 World Cup. In Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi, they brought in two seriously quick fast bowlers, but the former’s injury meant it was only Mavi that we would get to see operating this season in the league. The biggest draw, though, had to be Shubman Gill. There was plenty of buzz around Gill, the highest run-scorer at the World Cup in New Zealand and, by some distance, the most impactful Indian batsman in the tournament.

In his brief cameos lower down the order in his first few appearances, the youngster showed glimpses of brilliance, but did not have the time to settle down and play an innings that showcased his true talent.

As is often the case in scenarios like these, it was an injury to a teammate – the in-from Nitish Rana – that provided Gill the platform to show the world what he’s got.

And boy, was it great to watch.

Walking in at No 4, the youngster showed character and temperament that belied his inexperience at the big stage. He played some breathtaking shots on his way to a 36-ball 57. Among the six fours and two sixes he hit, there were a few shots that stood out.

The first boundary he scored, a sign of things to come, was a short ball from Shane Watson that kept low on a pitch that consistently had good carry. Shaping to pull the ball, Gill reacted to the lack of bounce in a split second, kept his balance and played a short-arm jab that raced to the square leg fence. A few balls later, when Harbhajan Singh fired one in full on the off stump, the teenager showed even cross-batted shots can be classy, as he played a half-sweep, half-drive that left his captain at the other end in awe.

Trying to mask his delight with a desire to temper down the hype around Gill, Karthik spoke after the match about how the 18-year-old had impressed in the few chances he has got, while admitting it’s been a bit harsh on him that he has had to bat lower down the order. “This boy is special,” the captain said. “I don’t want to hype him up so that he comes under pressure, but I see many years of India blue in his future.”

For starters, in the purple and gold of KKR, Gill is unlikely to bat at No 7 or lower from here on.

Dinesh Karthik’s game awareness

In the high-scoring reverse fixture between these two sides at Chepauk a few weeks back, Chennai needed 42 runs from the last three overs to chase down 202. Between Tom Curran, Andre Russell and Vinay Kumar, the three fast bowlers couldn’t do much to prevent that from happening.

Fast forward to Thursday evening at the Eden Gardens. Batting first, CSK once again had a good platform. Their biggest strength this year has been their batting at the death and with Dhoni once again in good touch, the men in yellow were targetting a big finish.

But, perhaps learning his lesson from that run-chase at Chepauk and by virtue of doing his homework, Dinesh Karthik tossed the ball to his three spinners to close out the innings. Kuldeep Yadav, Sunil Narine and Piyush Chawla combined to concede 31 runs from the last three overs. Had Gill taken Dhoni’s catch in the 18th over off Kuldeep, that return could well have been much lesser.

The move once again highlighted Karthik’s ability to read the game, and try something out of the box. As he said in the post-match presentation, it was a move that he made on the go, given how the pitch was slowing down.

And not just as a captain, Dinesh Karthik the batsman was also in his element on the night. For the second match running, he walked to the crease with the run-chase on a knife-edge. Just like he did against RCB at the Chinnaswamy, he played another fantastic innings to help his side cross the line. He followed up his 10-ball 23 in Bengaluru, with a 18-ball 45 at the Eden Gardens - and on both occasions, he hardly slogged. Ever since his heroics in the Nidahas Trophy final against Bangladesh, his confidence is clearly at a place where we have not seen DK operate at consistently at the highest level and he’s making the most of it.

Jadeja’s nightmare

One has to wonder if Ravindra Jadeja woke up on the wrong side of the bed on Thursday. Or, as Harsha Bhogle put it during commentary, it was the kind of night that made you question which direction did the sun come up.

In what will go down as one of the most incredible phases of play in IPL this year, Jadeja put down not one but two sitters off consecutive deliveries with Sunil Narine, the eventual player of the match, being the beneficiary. CSK’s fielding has repeatedly come under the scanner this year, but Jadeja is the one fielder you could bet your savings on to hold on to catches and he let himself and the team down with those two dropped catches.

But as much as the missed chances would grab the attention, along with his four-over spell that cost his team 39 runs, Jadeja’s batting left a lot to be desired. Promoted once again ahead of Dwayne Bravo, his 12-ball stay in the middle had a crucial consequence. Dhoni, who was once again striking the ball cleanly, just faced four deliveries in the final two overs as Jadeja struggled with his timing. Knowing Chennai’s struggles with their bowling, that innings proved to be the difference between a par score and a few valuable extra runs on board at the end.

Given Dhoni’s tendency to back his players to the hilt, it’s likely that Jadeja will continue to find the trust of skipper, but given his performances over the first half, that confidence must be wearing pretty thin.