MS Dhoni – the finisher is still capable of toying with bowlers and finishing games for his team. Once again, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) showed why they are one of the most consistent teams in Indian Premier League (IPL) history. With a thrilling four-wicket win over table-toppers Delhi Capitals (DC) to reach their ninth final.
Dhoni muscles his way to victory
Dhoni’s decision to come up the order instead of Ravindra Jadeja worked in CSK’s favour as he turned the game on his head and made the run chase look like a cakewalk. The skipper walked in to bat with 11 deliveries left. He got the strike with nine balls to go and 19 runs to win. The 40-year-old missed his first ball but hit the second one from Avesh Khan for a six in the penultimate over. In the last over, Dhoni dominated Tom Curran and hit three boundaries to seal the win for CSK as they inch closer to their fourth IPL-title win. He only dealt in boundaries and scored 18 runs off just six deliveries.
Ruturaj – the consistent performer
Chasing a target of 173, Ruturaj Gaikwad stood up to the task once again. Gaikwad led from the front and did not throw his wicket when DC were making their way back in the game. The CSK opener took calculative risks and took on Axar Patel in the middle overs. He reduced the difference between balls and runs in the 18th over hitting Anrich Nortje for two boundaries. The 24-year-old got out in the penultimate over after scoring 70 runs from from 50 deliveries including seven fours and two sixes.
Uthappa back-in-form
Third time was the charm for Robin Uthappa. The veteran T20 batter took control of the run chase right from the start. Uthappa targeted DC’s highest wicket-taker Avesh Khan and scored boundaries off him to get the required run rate. Early in his innings, he endured the pace of Anrich Nortje and rotated the strike to keep the scoreboard moving. He disturbed R Ashwin’s rhythm too scoring boundaries off him in the middle overs. However, the batter could not continue after his season’s first half-century as he got out for a score of 63 in the 14th over.
Tom Curran’s eventful return
When Rishabh Pant announced that Tom Curran will be the fourth overseas player at the toss, it made heads turn. Tom replaced uncapped player Ripal Patel in the side, who was given the role to accelerate in middle overs. In the batting department, he faced just one delivery. With ball in hand, Tom brought CSK back in the game taking the wickets of set batter Uthappa and Shardul Thakur in the 14th over. Introduced into the attack in the seventh over, the 26-year-old kept a lid on boundaries as well to force rash shots from CSK batters. He was given the tough task to defend 13 runs in the last over and took the wicket of Moeen Ali first ball. But he struggled against Dhoni and gave away three boundaries and a wide to end up on the losing side.
Iyer fields his heart out
Shreyas Iyer had a disappointing outing with the bat scoring just one run off eight deliveries at no.3. First, Iyer kept calm at the boundary taking the catch of Uthappa and avoiding collision with teammate Axar Patel. In the next over, he did not let CSK batters convert one into two and threw the ball just above the stumps to make it easy for Kagiso Rabada to collect and run out Ambati Rayudu. CSK batters refrained from taking changes against Iyer for the rest of the innings.
Shaw, Pant score fifties
It was a spirited batting performance from DC after losing Shikhar Dhawan and Iyer early in the powerplay overs. Shaw took on the bowlers from one end and set a good platform for the other batters to come. Patel’s promotion up the order did not work for DC as he scored only 10 runs. Shaw went on to score 60 runs from 34 balls but lost his wicket in the 11th over. Pant and Shimron Hetmyer helped recover DC from 80/4 in the 11th over. Pant reached his half-century at the end of the innings and remained not out whereas Hetmyer scored 24-ball 37 as DC scored 172/5.
