Dhoni: Once you are told to bowl a particular length, it’s important to keep bowling there. It was a par score, maybe ever par-plus
I think it’s the bowling [where it went wrong]. Execution was poor. We got hit for a lot of boundaries off full balls, the back of length ball was the way to go. What is important is to start delivering when it comes to executing.
Rajasthan remain at sixth in the table but with 10 points. There are no changes at the top of the table well with Chennai remaining unmoved at second place. That could change tomorrow if Kings XI Punjab win.
RR 177/6 in 19.5 Overs
RAJASTHAN ROYALS WIN BY 4 WICKETS!!
Truly wonderful from Buttler, who smoked a timely six off Bravo in the fourth ball of the over. That was pure muscle from Rajasthan’s hero of the day. The winning runs came through an overthrow from Watson. The players run on to the field to embrace Buttler. Poor cricket from Chennai. Rajasthan run out deserved winners from this contest. Buttler remains unbeaten on 95
RR 169/6 in 19.3 Overs
It’s all happening here (sorry). Just four balls from the first three deliveries and Buttler nearly holed out after miscuing a pull. Alas, Bravo, who was to take the catch, falls.
RR 165/6 in 19 Overs
GOWTHAM CITY! Magnificent from the Karnataka all-rounder with two massive sixes over long off. The bowling from Willey was poor as he continued to deliver in the slot. The left-armer, though, got his revenge by getting a wicket with a slow delivery in the last ball of the over, nicking it to Dhoni. Gowtham has done his job, though.
K Gowtham c Dhoni b Willey 13 (4)
WICKET! RR 146/5 in 17.4 Overs
Buttler gets the breakthrough and Stuart Binny goes after a decent cameo. The Indian all-rounder got a leading edge and Watson at cover made it look simple with his big hands at cover. This was after Binny had hammered Bravo for a huge six over long on. He missed out on a full-toss, though.
S Binny c Watson b Bravo 22 (17)
RR 139/4 in 17 Overs
Buttler gets eight from the David Willey over, which included a crisp cover drive for a boundary. Willey, though, got the measure of his international teammate otherwise. Importantly, Buttler keeps strike.
RR 131/4 in 16 Overs
The boundaries have dried up and the required run rate is hovering towards twelve. Buttler has withdrawn into a shell and was dropped by Watson off his own bowling. That was not hit very hard and could have been a breakthrough that Chennai were looking for. So what happens? Buttler makes the Australian pay with a smart reverse-sweep for a boundary.
RR 114/4 in 14 Overs
Well, well. How the tables have turned. The pressure is mounting and so is the run-rate. Binny is feeling it. The time-out is called by the umpire and Rajasthan need to have Buttler till the end to get home.
WICKET! RR 109/4 in 12.4 Overs
Another one goes and it’s another soft dismissal. Prashant Chopra got off to a fine start, getting a couple of boundaries before chipping a full delivery from Thakur straight to Bravo at short mid-wicket. How Chennai have wrestled back the momentum.
WICKET! RR 93/3 in 11.2 Overs
What a shame. That was a terrible way to throw one’s wicket away as Buttler has a brain-fade moment. Samson sent his partner back but Buttler kept running. Samson, who eventually scampered to the other end was well short of his ground when Bravo hit the stumps. Poor cricket from Rajasthan.
RR 88/2 in 10 Overs
Just when Rajasthan were pulling away, Chennai put the brakes on the scoring straight after the time out. Bravo bowls an excellent first over, deceiving Samson with a series of slow balls. Just three from the tenth over. Rajasthan need 89 from the last ten.
RR 78/2 in 8 Overs
Jos Buttler gets to his fourth fifty in a row and gets there with a clever dab to fine leg and running a quick two. It took him just 26 balls to get there. It’s day where the England players seem to pop out everywhere and Sam Billings saves a run with a truly exceptional effort. Another good over for Rajasthan, 11 come off it.
RR 67/2 in 7 Overs
The wickets have put the brakes on the scoring and even Buttler has gone subdued even though he got a boundary with a reverse sweep off Jadeja. Samson has also got off to a slow start. Ten runs came from the seventh over.
WICKET! RR 53/2 in 4.4 Overs
Oh dear! Rahane’s poor run continues and it’s such a soft dismissal. The ball holds up on the batsman and the Rajasthan captain withdraws his shot but gets a thick edge. The ball clips Dhoni’s gloves, bobs up and Raina at slip takes a simple catch.
A Rahane c Raina b Jadeja 4 (3)
WICKET! RR 48/1 in 4 Overs
Stokes departs. He was scratchy, got a lucky boundary and then heaved Harbhajan many a mile over the deep mid-wicket fence. Stokes then skips out, misses, and sees his stumps shattered. Bhajji has his man and is fired up. Buttler is still in cruise control.
B Stokes b Harbhajan Singh 11 (7)
RR 27/0 in 2 Overs
Six, four...it’s all coming thick and fast for Buttler, who, this time goes after Harbhajan. The spin veteran also fails to collect the ball in the last ball of the over from a run-out opportunity. Stokes was in all sorts of trouble after being sent back mid-pitch by his countryman. There is no stopping the buccaneering Buttler, though. Chennai need a wicket, and quickly.
RR 13/0 in 1 Over Buttler does Buttler things – hammer that willow when any width is on offer and he whips three boundaries through the off-side ring. Three fours in a row to start proceedings. Buttler’s compatriot David Willey comes back strongly, troubling the former with pace from a back of a length. Just the start Rajasthan wanted.
Chennai finish at 176/4
Rajasthan finish well as Dhoni gets a couple from the last ball of the innings. Rajasthan will be happy with their effort, especially in the second half of the innings. They manage to keep Dhoni quiet for much of his stay at the crease. It certainly looked like Rajasthan would have to chase 200 + again the way Raina and Watson were going in the first ten overs.
WICKET! CSK 174/3 in 19.4 Overs
Billings thumps Stokes for back-to-back boundaries, finally showing what he is capable of. Prashant Chopra at deep mid-wicket then dropped a regulation chance at deep mid-wicket but a silly run-out dismissal ends Billings’s stay. Buttler hits the stumps with a direct-hit. Battle of England and it’s Buttler who has the last laugh, quite literally.
CSK 164/3 in 19 Overs
Dhoni’s begins his carnage with a full-blooded pull over deep mid-wicket for a six. He also gets his first boundary as Archer’s shot-ball plan goes kaput – A clever pull short goes beyond the reach of short-third.
CSK 142/3 in 17 Overs
Billings’s crawl continues and Chennai can’t afford that at this stage. Like Usain Bolt warming up before leaving everyone behind at the finish line, Dhoni continues to take singles. A carnage looks imminent but Unadkat and Archer deserve credit for delivering a solid over each.
CSK 127/3 in 15 Overs
Rajasthan have certainly made their presence felt after Raina’s wicket and Sodhi leads the way with yet another excellent over. Just eight runs come from the last 12 deliveries. Dhoni is pushing hard for the twos while Billings is still struggling to settle down. Sodhi finishes with figures of 4-029-1
Did you know? For the 11th season in a row, Suresh Raina gets 300+ runs in the IPL
WICKET! CSK 119/3 in 13 Overs
This time Raina can’t clear the infield. Sodhi outwitted the southpaw on a number of occasions in his last two overs. The Chennai vice-captain tries to hit his way out of trouble but can only find Binny at deep mid-wicket. Soft wicket and Raina knows it.
S Raina c Binny b Sodhi 52 (35)
CSK 111/2 in 12 Overs
Suresh Raina completes his fifty with a nudge down his leg side, heels up. Classic Raina. You know what the other stereotype is? Raina raising his bat after completing a half-century.
WICKET! CSK 105/2 in 11.3 Overs
That’s end of Watson, who was going for one big hit too many. He had survived a couple of deliveries after a top edge flew over Buttler. He once again fails to get hold of his pull shot and the ball goes into orbit before Buttler takes a neat catch running backwards. Much needed breakthrough for the Royals.
S Watson c Buttler b Archer 39 (31)
CSK 90/1 in 10 Overs
Watson is slowly gathering steam. Slightly short from Undakat and the Australian pulls effortlessly over mid wicket for a six. The pressure gets to the left-armer and he bowls a couple of wides. Ten from the over.
CSK 80/1 in 9 Overs
Sodhi this time goes for plenty as Watson and Raina hammer him for sixes – both hits went over the cow corner boundary. The batsmen didn’t try to do anything extravagant otherwise and ran four singles in the over. Sixteen from the over. The partnership has crossed fifty-run mark.
CSK 64/1 in 8 Overs
Ish Sodhi once again ties the batsmen down with flight and pitching it on a back of a length. Stokes on the other hand, continues his pursuit of landing a yorker. Luckily for him, his lose deliveries don’t land in the ropes.
CSK 55/1 in 6 Overs
Rare miscue from Raina but he manages to lift the ball over mid-on fielder Stokes’s reach. The Englishman did ever so well to save a run for his side. Decent start for the much vaunted Unadkat otherwise. Just six from the over.
CSK 49/1 in 5 Overs
Raina just brought up his fifth boundary and once again, it was in his zone. Stokes the culprit this time. Easy pickings for the southpaw who casually flicks off his hips. Nobody at long-on to cut it off. Eight from the over.
CSK 41/1 in 4 Overs
The run-flow continues and Raina is in vintage touch. Eleven runs come from the Gowtham over. The off-spinner’s deliveries weren’t shabby by any stretch of imagination. He missed his length by a fraction and went for two boundaries square of the wicket on either side.
CSK 30/1 in 3 Overs
Raina gets off in trademark fashion: first he flicks on the leg side and then creams one through the covers. The boundary-hitting continues. Rajasthan need to nip this in the bud.
WICKET! CSK 19/1 in 2.1 Overs
And Rajasthan have their man. That was a massive chop-on from Rayudu, who was once again looking in good touch. The ball was there for the batsman to free his arms. Soft dismissal for Chennai’s in-form man.
A Rayudu b Archer 12 (9)
CSK 19/0 in 2 Overs
Left-arm spinner Ankit Sharma’s first over costs 11 runs. Rayudu continues to heave away to glory. Yet again, fortunes smiles on the 32-year-old and the ball trickles to the long off fence. Watson also gets into the act with a swivel and the ball lands into the deep backward-square ropes.
CSK 8/0 in 1 Over
Rayudu is in sublime form and he shows that with an authoritative loft over covers and the ball trickles into the boundary. He nearly holed out to mid-off after getting too adventurous for good in the last ball of the over.
Gowtham will continue to open the bowling. Watson and Rayudu open the batting for Chennai
Two changes for both teams: Rajasthan have Ankit Sharma and Ranji triple-centurion Prashant Chopra makes his debut. Anureet Singh and Mahipal Lomror miss out.
Chennai have Sam Billings and Karn Sharma making comebacks. Pacer Lungi Ngidi and Dhruv Shorey have been left out the XI.
7.30 pm: Chennai Super Kings win toss and MS Dhoni opts to bat first on a wicket that promises a lot of runs.
Hello and welcome. Back to winning ways after a hat-trick of defeats, a desperate Rajasthan Royals face a herculean task when they take on mighty Chennai Super Kings in a must-win game.
Three consecutive defeats have more or less sealed their fate but Royals somehow managed to keep themselves afloat with a 15-run win over Kings XI Punjab in their last game in their fortress.
But for things to turn around for the Royals, every aspect of their game needs to improve and click for them in the remaining four games. Today’s match would also provide Royals a chance to avenge their 64-run loss to CSK at Pune in their previous encounter.
The Rajasthan outfit didn’t have the best of campaigns so far this season and are placed sixth with just eight points from 10 games. Standing precariously, the Ajinkya Rahane-led side need to win to keep alive their play-off chances. A defeat will definitely end their hopes.