CSK BLOW AWAY RCB
PUNE: Chennai Super Kings are virtually through to the Indian Premier League playoffs after a comprehensive six-wicket victory over Royal Challengers Bangalore, courtesy a superb bowling effort from the spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Harbhajan Singh.
Jadeja (3/18 in 4 overs) and Harbahajan (2/22 in 4 overs) wreaked havoc as RCB could only manage 127 for 9, largely due to efforts from Parthiv Patel (53 off 41 balls) and Tim Southee (36 off 26 balls).
On a tricky pitch, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (31 no off 23 balls) picked up Yuzvendra Chahal for some special treatment with three huge sixes as CSK knocked off the required runs in only 18 overs to move to 14 points from 10 games.
Another win in the next four matches will guarantee CSK a spot as 16 points has always been a cut-off for playoff qualification.
RCB’S sloppy fielding also contributed to their downfall. At 80 for 4 in the 13th over, CSK were in a spot of bother but Parthiv as usual was shoddy behind the stumps, dropping Dwayne Bravo (14 off 17 balls) off Murugan Ashwin.
Ashwin was also unlucky when Chahal dropped Bravo at deep extra cover as the allrounder along with his skipper added 48 runs for the unbroken fifth wicket stand.
For Virat Kohli, it is turning out to be yet another disappointing season as RCB once again stare at an imminent exit with only three wins from nine games.
Earlier, Jadeja and Harbhajan choked the run flow in the middle overs apart from snaring wickets at regular intervals to peg back RCB. In all, CSK bowled 54 dot balls (equivalent to 9 overs), which also proved to be a key factor.
While it was a collective bowling effort by CSK, Jadeja and Harbhajan conceded only 40 runs between them with prize scalps of Kohli and AB de Villiers in their kitty.
Jadeja got rid of the Indian captain with an armer which breached Kohli’s defence. The ball skidded through the twopaced surface where batting exactly was not easy.
In the very next over, de Villiers was stumped trying to reverse-sweep Harbhajan and RCB never recovered from the twin blows.
Parthiv did score a halfcentury but the dismal show of the other batsmen hurt them dearly.
Save Parthiv and Southee who ensured a 120-run plus total for the visiting team, none of the other batsmen could even reach double digits.
With the ball not coming onto the bat, both Jadeja and Harbhajan also bowled slower through the air to make life more difficult for the batsmen.
New ball bowlers Lungi Ngidi (1/24 in 4 overs) and IPL debutant David Willey (1/24 in 4 overs) also used their variations to good effect. Ngidi bowled a lot of slow cutters.
Parthiv hit five boundaries and two sixes but he was guilty of not being able to rotate the strike as he time and again failed to read Ngidi’s slower ones.
He finally gave a return catch to Jadeja as he was not able to check his stroke. Mandeep Singh on the other hand tried to sweep and gave a catch in the deep.
Tottering at 89 for 8, it was Southee who took it upon himself, adding 38 runs for the ninth wicket with Mohammed Siraj, whose contribution was a mere three runs. INDORE: After a much needed victory over Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma believes his side is still alive in the tournament and could make it to the play-offs.
Mumbai, placed fifth in the Indian Premier League (IPL) points table, registered a sixwicket win over Punjab at the Holkar Cricket Stadium here on Friday.
Mumbai delivered an allround show, which the skipper termed as a ‘collective effort’.
Bowling first, a disciplined effort helped Mumbai restrict Punjab to 174/6 in 20 overs. Later Suryakumar Yadav’s fourth IPL fifty and a quickfire unbeaten 31 and 24 runs by Krunal Pandya and Rohit respectively guided Mumbai home with an over to go.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Rohit said: “I think we are still alive. Good performance tonight, and a much-needed win for us. We needed everyone to come and put a collective effort.”
“We started well with the ball. To restrict their batting unit on this pitch at this ground was a great effort. And to chase it down the way we did was really nice,” the Mumbai skipper added.
Explaining his decision to bat lower-down the order, the 31-year-old said: “The way we went about our chase in the first 10 overs, I felt we needed momentum. So, Hardik, the way he plays, was suited to do that.”
“Hence, I held myself back for the end and having played here before, I know what kind of shots work. Always feels good when you finish off the chase,” Rohit added.
The Mumbai skipper also seemed concerned about leaking of runs in the death overs. HYDERABAD: Electing to bat, Delhi Daredevils scored 163 for 5 in their IPL match against Sunrisers Hyderabad here on Saturday. Brief Scores: Delhi Daredevils: 163 for 5 in 20 overs (Prithvi Shaw 65, Shreyas Iyer 44; Rashid Khan 2/23).