Chennai Super Kings will wonder if they managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Set a target of 168, Dhoni’s men got off to a solid start, racing to 90/1 in 10 overs. KKR looked set to drop two points again but won by 10 runs in the end, at Abu Dhabi, thanks to some inspired middle overs bowling.
CSK supporters will be frustrated at yet another poorly paced chase, eventually finishing at 157. Having scored 54/1 in their powerplay, Dhoni & Co will be wondering how they managed to end up needing 26 in the last over.
Having won the toss, skipper Dinesh Karthik elected to bat first, following in the footsteps of the victorious Mumbai Indians, who did the same at the same ground the previous day.
A disappointing middle order performance saw KKR failing to capitalise on a good start, eventually getting bowled out for 167 in 20 overs.
The match belonged to KKR’s youngsters. Rahul Tripathi with the bat and Nagarkoti and Chakravarthy with the ball. They held onto their nerves against one of the most successful sides in IPL history.
Young Chakravarthy striking Captain Dhoni’s middle stump to send him back, perhaps, summarised the match’s tone.
CSK CHASE DEFEAT... YET AGAIN
Chennai, which has chased in each of their six matches in this edition of the IPL, have shown a pattern of faltering post the powerplay and leaving too much for the death overs. It was an identical story on Wednesday.
Having scored 54/1 in six overs and reaching 90/1 at the end of 10, all they needed was some calm batting and 78 in their remaining ten overs.
However, between overs 11 and 15, CSK managed only 20 runs and lost two crucial wickets. Moreover, in the ten overs from over 7 to 16, they scored only 70. Eventually, the team found itself in a familiar position yet again, requiring 39 from 3 overs.
KKR FINALLY FIND AN OPENER IN TRIPATHI
Among the central talking points of the first innings is Tripathi’s promotion up the order, from number 8 in the previous match, to opener. Importantly, it solved the problem of a struggling Sunil Narine failing to get runs as opener.
Tripathi, playing just his second match of the season, impressed yet again. Having scored a resilient 36 off 16 balls under pressure, Tripathi stamped his class with a solid knock of 81 off 51 deliveries.
Tripathi proved to be the heart of the Kolkata innings. Importantly, Tripathi stuck around till the 17th over as wickets kept tumbling at the other end at regular intervals.
KKR’S DISAPPOINTING MIDDLE ORDER
Despite their win, coach Brendon McCullum will be disappointed with his team’s middle order performance. Having raced to 93/2 in the first ten overs, KKR managed only 75 in the next ten and lost 8 wickets.
Nitish Rana, Sunil Narine, Eoin Morgan, Andre Russell, Dinesh Kartik managed just 47 among them. KKR’s famed middle-order failed to capitalise on a good start provided by opener Tripathi.
KKR supporters will be worried about big hitter Russell and captain Karthik’s batting forms. Neither have managed to get going and have struggled for runs.
KKR BOWLERS HOLD THEIR NERVES
Defending a total of 167 required a disciplined and resilient bowling performance by the men in purple. Credit goes to skipper Karthik. who made some excellent bowling changes and backed his bowlers till the end.
Russell was introduced into the attack only in the 18th over and took KKR home with a spell of 18/1 in two overs at the death.
Narine will be happy with his performance today. In a surprise move, he was brought on late today in the 12th over and proved why he has been such an asset for KKR over the years. He absorbed the pressure and took 1/31, never allowing CSK to run away with the match.
However, KKR’s win today belonged to the youngsters. If Tripathi shone with the bat, young spinner Varun Chakravarthy bowled a match-winning spell of 21/1 in three overs while Kamlesh Nagarkoti impressed once again with 28/1 in his four overs.
COMETH THE HOUR, COMETH SHANE WATSON
Few cricketers have stamped their authority over the IPL the way Shane Watson has. The CSK opener took off on Wednesday from where he stopped on Sunday, against Rajasthan Royals.
Having taken his team to a comprehensive 10-wicket victory against RR with a terrific unbeaten knock of 83, he followed it up with 50 against KKR.
Questions were raised about Watson’s age and form following CSK’s three straight losses. The 39-year-old had managed only 52 runs in his first four matches. In the last two innings, he has scored 133.
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