CSK needed changes because losses were becoming familiar, says coach Stephen Fleming

Talking about Sam Curran's elevation to opener, head coach Stephen Fleming said they wanted to tweak the combination because the nature of their defeats was becoming 'too familiar.'
Faf du Plessis of Chennai Superkings and Sam Curran. (Photo | IPL)
Faf du Plessis of Chennai Superkings and Sam Curran. (Photo | IPL)

CHENNAI: Chennai Super Kings returned to winning ways by defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad by 20 runs in Dubai on Tuesday. After putting 167/6 on the board, CSK held SRH to 147/8 to snap a two-match losing streak.

English all-rounder Sam Curran opened the innings for Chennai and scored 31 off 21 deliveries. The move surprised many and also turned out to be one of the factors behind CSK's success. Talking about Curran's elevation to opener, head coach Stephen Fleming said they wanted to tweak the combination because the nature of their defeats was becoming 'too familiar.'

"We had Sam padded up for every innings. We thought that rather than getting clogged up, we should be certain about Sam and put him on the front. Put the onus on the batting group instead of shuffling it. We wanted to do something different because our losses were becoming too familiar," Fleming said at the post-match press conference.

Speaking on the move to send Shane Watson at No 3, Fleming said, "Shane has got a lot of experience. He is well equipped to take on the attack in the second half of powerplay or later. Faf (Du Plessis) is very good at going over the top early, while Shane has more of a power game."

The coach also said they were "apprehensive" about the total at first, but added that the pitches are getting slower as the tournament progresses. "It was nice to bat first. It was the first time we batted first and we won. We were a bit apprehensive but it was in line with most scores, as the tracks are getting slower."

The MS Dhoni-led side decided to play an extra bowler in Piyush Chawla - a move that paid off. Explaining the decision, the former New Zealand skipper said, "Our attack is fluid. It's just a case of taking a batter out and having a bowler. MS was comfortable with the extra bowler as we felt it (pitch) might slow down. As it turned out, he (Chawla) only bowled one over but it was a good over."
 

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