CHENNAI: With all roads leading to Chepauk blocked due to protests, fans had a tough time reaching the stadium. But all their pain vanished once Chennai Super Kings put up a spectacular display. Chasing 202 to win is never easy, but the Men in Yellow pulled off a thrilling five-wicket win.
When four were required off two balls in the final over from Vinay Kumar, Ravindra Jadeja carted the penultimate one over the long-on fence, to spark wild celebrations.
Actually, what helped the hosts was the practice game they played on this pitch. As expected, Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu went hammer and tongs early on. Rayudu played crisp drives on either side and his straight drive off Piyush Chawla was the shot of the day.
Once the duo departed after a good start, CSK faced the real test. With Sunil Narine and Kuldeep Yadav operating, one required good technique to survive. Both Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni struggled against the spinners. Dhoni was initially at sea facing Kuldeep. Suffering from cramps, Raina holed out in the deep. When 100 were required off 48 balls, the CSK skipper was taking singles and playing dot balls.
Sam Billings rode his luck and his lusty hits brought down the asking rate. He continued to play aggressively to make 56 to take CSK near the target. Later, Bravo and Jadeja finished off the job in style. CSK had begun well by reducing Kolkata Knight Riders to 89/5, but towards the end an unbeaten 88 Andre Russell propelled the visitors.
Coach Stephen Fleming had done the homework well. The ploy was to not to allow batsmen to settle down. Initially, no bowler bowled two overs in a row. This tactic saw CSK take wickets at regular intervals.
Before the tournament questions were raised as to whether Harbhajan Singh would be able to fill in the void left by R Ashwin. Coach Fleming believed the pitch suited Harbhajan’s style. True to reputation Bhajji was the pick of the bowlers. He tossed up a nice one to deceive the dangerous Narine and induced a false stroke. Dhoni shuffled his bowlers well and this put pressure on the opposition.
With most player over 30 years, CSK batting coach Mike Hussey had said before the game that his team was not the best fielding unit, but a smart one. Perhaps to prove a point both Raina and Dwayne Bravo showed their agility on the field by effecting a superb run-out and a brilliant catch.
The good work almost went in vain as Russell played a trademark innings to the delight of the crowd. But then, Billings had the last laugh.
Brief scores: KKR 202/6 in 20 overs (Russell 88 n.o, Karthik 26; Watson 2/39) lost to CSK 205/5 in 19.5 overs (Billings 56, Watson 42; Curran 2/39).