Punjab stuns Chennai despite Dhoni’s heroics
MS Dhoni’s master class innings of 79 runs off 44 balls was not good enough as Chennai Super Kings crashed to their first defeat when they went down fighting to Kings XI Punjab by four runs in the Indian Premier League match in Mohali on Sunday night. Chasing Punjab’s 197 for 7 CSK scored 193 for 5.
Earlier, Chris Gayle showed that he was not yet a spent force as he smashed his second fastest fifty in the IPL to help Kings XI Punjab post a healthy 197 for seven against Chennai Super Kings. The 38-year-old Jamaican, who twice went unsold at the auction and was later picked up by the Punjab franchise for a base price of Rs 2 crore, played a trademark innings toying with the opposition attack.
Playing his first game of the season, he hammered 66 off 33 balls and raced to his half-century off 22 balls. His fastest fifty had come off 17 balls, against Pune in 2013.
His knock was studded with four sixes and seven boundaries.
The West Indian weaved a 96-run opening partnership alongside the in-form K L Rahul (37 off 22), setting up the platform for a big score.
Mayank Agarwal (30 off 19) and Karun Nair (29 off 17) too chipped in with useful contributions.
For CSK , Shardul Thakur and Imran Tahir picked up two scalps each while Harbhajan Singh, Shane Watson and Dwayne Bravo got a wicket each.
Harbhajan Singh gave Chennai the first breakthrough when Rahul was caught by Dwayne Bravo, but by then KXIP were comfortably placed and reached 100 in just 8.4 overs.
Two overs later Gayle too departed, handing over a simple catch to Imran Tahir at short fine leg off Shane Watson’s bowling.