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Days after Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) Ajinkya Rahane complained of Eden Gardens pitch not assisting their spinners, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming said that it is not the old Chepauk where they could just pack the team with spinners. Fleming admitted that they are struggling to read the pitch at MA Chidambaram Stadium for the last couple of years.
"Well, as we've been telling you for a number of years, there was no home advantage at Chepauk," Fleming said after CSK lost to RCB for the first time since inaugural edition in 2008. "We've won away from home a couple of times. And we haven't been able to read… we've been really honest with you. We haven't been able to read the wickets here in the last couple of years. So, it's not new. We are trying to come to grips each day with what we get, and we don't know."
While Noor Ahmad picked three wickets for 36 runs, Ravindra Jadeja remained wicketless and conceded 37 runs. Ravichandran Ashwin was given just two overs. His only wicket was of Devdutt Padikkal and he conceded 22 runs.
"It's not the Chepauk [of old] where you can just go in and play four spinners," Fleming said. "We're having to work really hard to try and understand what the nature of each pitch is, and it's quite different."
On March 28, Fleming expected dew to play a part. However, it became difficult for CSK batters in the run chase of 197 as they suffered a collapse.
"No, we didn't get it right. It's so hard to read, but we thought it was going to skid on with the dew, but it actually got a bit tacky. So, it certainly made it harder here," the former New Zealand captain added.
CSK's next match is away from home against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati on March 30. RR are low on confidence having lost their first two games.
Early wickets, slow start cost CSK
In the run chase, Rahul Tripathi and captain Ruturaj Gaikwad fell to Josh Hazlewood in the second over. Deepak Hooda struggled and fell to Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Sam Curran was promoted up the order but he could not make it count. By the time Rachin Ravindra fell for a 31-ball 41, the required run rate was already out of the grasp. CSK managed to post 146/8 on the board.
