CHAHARBUSTER!
On-song Deepak takes 4/13 as CSK thrash Punjab by 6 wickets
Mumbai, 16: Chennai Super Kings defeated Punjab Kings by six wickets to register their first win in the Indian Premier League here on Friday. Opting to bowl, Deepak Chahar returned with impressive figures of four for 13 as CSK dished out a clinical bowling and fielding display to restrict Punjab to a below-par 106 for eight.
Chahar said there was a bit more seam than swing. “We bowled in the right areas. Last year was difficult for all of us and I had Covid. I had to stay in quarantine for at least 28 days and then after four days I had to play. This year we trained well and the last game was a bit of a wake-up call for us. Things went our way. I think the pitch will stay the same. I think we will have to score 107 and it'll be easy for us,” he added.
Shahrukh Khan topscored for Punjab with a
36-ball 47.
Chasing the paltry target, Moeen Ali made 46, while Faf du Plessis remained unbeaten on 36 as CSK reached home in
15.4 overs.
Mohammed Shami was the pick of the bowlers for Punjab with figures of
2/21.
Punjab skipper KL Rahul said: “When any team loses five wickets in the first six or seven overs. The pitch did play differently. It was more sticky and tacky than what it looked like. Deepak with his knuckle ball got a couple of wickets. Myself getting runout. It wasn’t a 110-wicket, maybe 150-160.”
Earlier, Tamil Nadu’s power-hitter M Shahrukh Khan was the only Punjab batsman to make an impression, with a 36-ball
47 (4X4s, 2X6s) before falling to Sam Curran in the final over as CSK was all over their opponent.
Sam Curran (1/12), Moeen Ali (1/17), Dwayne Bravo (1/10) were the other wicket-takers for CSK.
Aiming to bounce back after being outclassed by Delhi Capitals in their opening match, CSK bowlers justified skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's
decision to bowl first by reducing Punjab to 26 for four in the powerplay (first six overs).
Chahar engineered the Punjab slide in the very first over by sending back Mayank Agarwal (0) with a beauty which nipped away from middle stump to hit the off stump. Chahar kept up the pressure and increased CSK's woes with his consistency
and conceded fours in his spell.
In-form Rahul (5) was run-out by a brilliant direct throw from Ravindra Jadeja fielding at short-cover as the batsman tried to scramble for a single. Jadeja was in the act in the fifth over again, grabbing a superb catch diving full-length to dismiss Chris Gayle for 10 to
only two four-over
give Chahar wicket.
Nicholas Pooran bagged his second straight duck, pulling a short delivery straight into the hands of Shardul Thakur at longleg.
Deepak Hooda (10), who played a blinder in Punjab's first match against Rajasthan Royals, could not repeat his heroics, lobbing a simple catch
his
second
to Faf du Plessis as the team slipped to 26 for five in the seventh over.
Shahrukh Khan and Jhye Richardson (15, 22 balls, 2x4s) added 31 runs for the sixth wicket in what was the best partnership of the innings.
Murugan Ashwin (6) then added 30 runs with his TN teammate Khan to help Punjab’s cause in an otherwise nightmare for them.