“We could have done better,” Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni had said at the post-match presentation on Wednesday in Bangalore. He wasn’t completely pleased with his team’s overall performance even after they had won the away game, demanding a better performance from his spinners, who had failed to create an impact in this edition.
Ravindra Jadeja had failed to justify his spot in the squad. He wasn’t amongst the wickets. His captain had shown a lot of faith in him, but he had constantly let the skipper down. Dhoni would have desperately wanted to see his favourite all-rounder perform well.
Ravichandran Ashwin’s poor showing with the ball must have been a concern for the team. CSK’s celebrated off-spinner had bowled only four overs in the last three matches he played before the Saturday’s match.
Dhoni would have looked forward to a decent performance from the team’s middle order. And, having failed consistently after promoting himself up the batting order, he would have badly wanted to contribute to the team’s cause with the bat.
CSK were looking for answers when they took on Kings XI Punjab, the team that had beaten them thrice in the last edition, one of them being a knockout punch.
Most fans were expecting a run-feast. Although Punjab decided to leave out their star batsman Glen Maxwell, the team had enough firepower to match the Super Kings.
One way traffic
But at the end of the day, Super Kings couldn’t have been any happier. They thrashed the boys from Punjab by putting up a splendid, overall show. A 97-run victory against an equally potent team was all that the men in yellow would have wanted.
Having won the toss and opting to bat first on a good track, the team banked on its openers to give it a good start. McCullum and Smith didn’t disappoint. The duo put up a 50-run partnership, giving CSK yet another solid start. With some ruthless batting at the top, CSK have been able to score at an average rate of 9.5 runs per over in the first six overs, this season.
Smith took Karanveer Singh to the cleaners as he smashed 22 runs off the Kings XI leggie’s first over. McCullum on the other hand was dancing down the wicket against fast bowlers. Unfortunately, Smith had to miss the party halfway as he dragged a short ball from Anureet Singh onto the leg stump.
Raina joined McCullum and both of them continued hurting the Punjab bowlers. The Punjab attack looked hopeless against the aggressive duo. The Punjab fielders led by the Australian quickie, Mitchell Johnson, performed listlessly on the field. Johnson spilled two catches, gifting an extra life each to McCullum and Raina. Both Raina and McCullum made the best use of it, by adding runs at a good pace. The duo notched up a 66-run partnership.
McCullum made 66 runs of 44 deliveries, a knock that included three sixes and eight boundaries, before getting caught by David Miller at the long off boundary, who almost gave McCullum one more life.
The men who made a comeback
Kings XI Punjab’s ground fielding helped CSK’s cause. The Punjab fielders came up with a sloppy fielding effort, which enabled Dhoni and Jadeja to steal extra runs. They ran hard across the twenty yards, converting several ones into twos.
Dhoni regained his touch against the Kings XI bowlers. Unlike the previous matches, he was able to middle the ball better. The CSK skipper scored 41 runs of 27 deliveries at a strike rate of over 150. Jadeja too chipped in with a handy batting performance.
CSK’s superb second half
Kings XI had the reputation of chasing big totals. Was 192 runs enough for CSK to seal the top spot?
The answer turned out to be a huge “yes”.
CSK’s spinners turned the tables for them. Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin made life hard for the Kings XI batting unit, scalping five Kings XI wickets between them.
Jadeja, playing his 100th IPL match, was the hero with the ball. He varied his pace well to bamboozle the Kings XI batsmen. Ashwin got a lot of purchase from the track. Ashish Nehra continued his dream run with the ball, pouching two wickets. He has retained the purple cap and looks determined to keep it with him for a long while.
The Kings XI batsmen were never really in the chase. They didn’t make the CSK fielders work hard, being kind enough to hit the balls straight to them. The scorers were given a breather after they were made to toil by the CSK batsmen.
The Kings have helped the Super Kings regain the top spot. Dhoni looked relieved and jubilant at the presentation ceremony. Why would he not? It was a royal gift.
Ravindra Jadeja had failed to justify his spot in the squad. He wasn’t amongst the wickets. His captain had shown a lot of faith in him, but he had constantly let the skipper down. Dhoni would have desperately wanted to see his favourite all-rounder perform well.
Ravichandran Ashwin’s poor showing with the ball must have been a concern for the team. CSK’s celebrated off-spinner had bowled only four overs in the last three matches he played before the Saturday’s match.
Dhoni would have looked forward to a decent performance from the team’s middle order. And, having failed consistently after promoting himself up the batting order, he would have badly wanted to contribute to the team’s cause with the bat.
CSK were looking for answers when they took on Kings XI Punjab, the team that had beaten them thrice in the last edition, one of them being a knockout punch.
Most fans were expecting a run-feast. Although Punjab decided to leave out their star batsman Glen Maxwell, the team had enough firepower to match the Super Kings.
One way traffic
But at the end of the day, Super Kings couldn’t have been any happier. They thrashed the boys from Punjab by putting up a splendid, overall show. A 97-run victory against an equally potent team was all that the men in yellow would have wanted.
Having won the toss and opting to bat first on a good track, the team banked on its openers to give it a good start. McCullum and Smith didn’t disappoint. The duo put up a 50-run partnership, giving CSK yet another solid start. With some ruthless batting at the top, CSK have been able to score at an average rate of 9.5 runs per over in the first six overs, this season.
Smith took Karanveer Singh to the cleaners as he smashed 22 runs off the Kings XI leggie’s first over. McCullum on the other hand was dancing down the wicket against fast bowlers. Unfortunately, Smith had to miss the party halfway as he dragged a short ball from Anureet Singh onto the leg stump.
Raina joined McCullum and both of them continued hurting the Punjab bowlers. The Punjab attack looked hopeless against the aggressive duo. The Punjab fielders led by the Australian quickie, Mitchell Johnson, performed listlessly on the field. Johnson spilled two catches, gifting an extra life each to McCullum and Raina. Both Raina and McCullum made the best use of it, by adding runs at a good pace. The duo notched up a 66-run partnership.
McCullum made 66 runs of 44 deliveries, a knock that included three sixes and eight boundaries, before getting caught by David Miller at the long off boundary, who almost gave McCullum one more life.
The men who made a comeback
Kings XI Punjab’s ground fielding helped CSK’s cause. The Punjab fielders came up with a sloppy fielding effort, which enabled Dhoni and Jadeja to steal extra runs. They ran hard across the twenty yards, converting several ones into twos.
Dhoni regained his touch against the Kings XI bowlers. Unlike the previous matches, he was able to middle the ball better. The CSK skipper scored 41 runs of 27 deliveries at a strike rate of over 150. Jadeja too chipped in with a handy batting performance.
CSK’s superb second half
Kings XI had the reputation of chasing big totals. Was 192 runs enough for CSK to seal the top spot?
The answer turned out to be a huge “yes”.
CSK’s spinners turned the tables for them. Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin made life hard for the Kings XI batting unit, scalping five Kings XI wickets between them.
Jadeja, playing his 100th IPL match, was the hero with the ball. He varied his pace well to bamboozle the Kings XI batsmen. Ashwin got a lot of purchase from the track. Ashish Nehra continued his dream run with the ball, pouching two wickets. He has retained the purple cap and looks determined to keep it with him for a long while.
The Kings XI batsmen were never really in the chase. They didn’t make the CSK fielders work hard, being kind enough to hit the balls straight to them. The scorers were given a breather after they were made to toil by the CSK batsmen.
The Kings have helped the Super Kings regain the top spot. Dhoni looked relieved and jubilant at the presentation ceremony. Why would he not? It was a royal gift.
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