Super Kings Stunning Beat in Mumbai

BANGALORE: Lucky. Kissed by fortune. Favored by fate. Whatever! Count Chennai Super Kings out at your own peril. After creation the play-offs following a string of happy results, the defending champions overcame a disastrous start to defeat Mumbai Indians by 38 runs in the Eliminator at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday night.

Chennai Super Kings will next play Delhi Daredevils in the Qualifier - a near semifinal - at their stronghold, the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, on Friday. The winner of that game will meet Kolkata Knight Riders in the final match of IPL- Wednesday, Chennai were sent in to bat by Harbhajan Singh and found themselves in hot water within the 1st 8balls of the match. They were two down for 1 run, with M. Vijay and Suresh Raina back to back in the pavilion, and the ball swinging cruelly late, when they engineered an amazing turnaround.

Super Kings steady the boat through Michael Hussey (49) and S. Badrinath (47), and then benefited from a jaw-dropping display of power hitting from skipper M.S. Dhoni (51, 20b) and Dwayne Bravo (33 runs 4b) The conclusive assault bring in 105 runs from the last 8 overs, as captain cool and Bravo went crazy, adding 73 in just 29 balls and taking Chennai to a gargantuan 187-5.

The most successful IPL permit then tided over Dwayne Smith’s early fireworks in the chase to trounce Mumbai expansively, the chase having virtually ended when the pursuer found themselves 5 down for less than hundred, all their stars back in the dugout. Bravo had a brilliant day in the field, 1st sparkling with the bat and adding 2 wickets to his haul when Mumbai took guard.

The Champions League T20 winners were never in the hunt except for a brief period when Smith was going after Ben Hilfenhaus – who had an unusual off-day – but when Sachin Tendulkar sacrificed his wicket for Smith in a brainless run-out, the chase faltered irreversibly, ending in a rash of wickets resulting from the pressure of a sky-high asking rate.

The match was really about what Chennai did when they took 1st strike. Harbhajan, criticize through the match for under-bowling himself, opened events by restricting Hussey and Vijay to just one off the 1st over. Vijay continued his indifferent form when he edged Dhaval Kulkarni’s late away swinger to Rohit Sharma at 1st slip. On the next ball, Suresh Raina went for a drive on the off-side and chopped the ball on to the stumps for a golden duck out.

Within the first 8 balls of the match, Chennai were on the back-foot in this most critical of matches. Harbhajan followed up his one-run opening over with a maiden to Hussey and the pressure on Chennai mounted, but Hussey and Badrinath made the best of their chances to resurrect the torn innings.

Badrinath edges Kulkarni a couple of times to the boundary and shattered the same bowler to the long on fence. Hussey got off the mark on the 9th ball he faced, but switched gears when R.P. Singh came on to bowl. The Aussie crunch 3 fours – one of which was chancily feathered wide of first slip – to catch up on his strike rate.

Malinga was introduced and Hussey welcomed him with a four caress through the off-side. Chennai reached 61 for 2 in 10 overs as Bhajji played around with the bowling changes. But when the captain Dhoni came on again to bowl – in the 11th of the innings – he was ill-treated by Badrinath and Hussey, who clouted a six each and took 19 from the over.

Badrinath looked good for a fifty in his return game but he skied Kieron Pollard to long-on where he was taken by Rohit for 47. Hussey and Ravindra Jadeja departed quickly after, and then began the most brutal phase of the innings as the last 8 overs of the innings conceded 105 runs. Dhoni flick the first ball he faced to the mid-wicket fence and waded into the flurry of full-length delivery that Mumbai bowlers accessible him. James Franklin was massacred over long-on for the main hit of IPL-V – all the way for 112 metres.

The Power play hero Kulkarni was clobbered straight past his head. Then the India captain launched into a helicopter shot (112 m) off Malinga over that came to rest in the stands. Dhoni reached his 50 in 20 balls. It was fearless, nerveless hitting as Bravo joined his skipper in a carnage that produced 73 runs in just 29 balls. The highlight of Bravo's knock was a banana peel ‘six that he powered, off-balance, against Kulkarni in the final over. What Sooper hitting! Whatay Sooper team! Delhi Daredevils had better watch out.

Man of the match

MS Dhoni

Tomorrow Match

Chennai Super Kings Vs Delhi Daredevils

8:00pm

IPL Thrilling Climax This Week

The I P L heads for a thrilling climax this week when the play-offs take place to decide the champions of this season popular T20 tournament.

The 5th edition of the glitzy cash-rich event is already being hailed as the most moving ever despite off-field troubles as packed houses watched beguiling cricket over the past 6 weeks. The last spot in the play-offs was decided in Sunday's last but one match of the 72-game league as defensive champions Chennai Super Kings sneaked through while Royal Challengers Bangalore were stunned by unfancied Deccan Chargers.

Table-toppers Delhi Daredevils will take on number 1 Kolkata Knight Riders in the 1st play-off in Pune on Tuesday, with the winner advancing to the May 27 final in Chennai. The Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings, the 3rd and 4th teams in the league, will face-off in Bangalore on Wednesday with the scum being knocked out of the race The loser of the 1st play-off will then meet the winner of the 2nd in Chennai on Friday to determine the 2nd finalist.

The play-off system rewards constancy over seven weeks, said IPL chairman Raj Shukla. One bad day in the office does not ruin a team's chances. The winner of Sunday's name clash at the Chidambaram stadium in Chennai will pocket $2 million and the runner-up will get $1.5 million. The 3rd-placed team will get a direct entry into the Champions League to be held in India in October among the top domestic Twenty20 clubs from about the world.

Delhi Daredevils, led by Sehwag and featuring Sri Lankan veteran Jayewardene and South African fast bowler Morne Morkel, have shown consistent form by winning 11 of their 16 league matches. But the Knight Riders will fancy their chances on a slow Pune wicket ideal for their West Indies Sunil Narine, whose haul of 22 wickets this season is 2nd only to Morkel's tally of 25.

You can't predict what will happen in a T20 game, but we have faith in ourselves, said Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir. We want to succeed this one for the people of Kolkata. Mumbai Indians, featuring the inspiring Sachin Tendulkar, bounced back after a shaky start to end 3rd and set up an intriguing clash against India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings.

We must not waste the s2nd life given to us, said Dhoni. We must execute our plans well as Mumbai will come hard at us. Among a series of scandals to hit the match has been police charges against Australian Luke Pomersbach, who played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, over supposedly molest a woman and beating up her fiancé.

5 Indian players signed to IPL teams were also suspended after an undercover TV report alleged they were ready to take money for spot-fixing.

Bowlers Stunning Kolkata is gone top

MUMBAI: Kolkata Knight Riders entrapped Mumbai Indians in a web of deceit as ‘mystery’ spinner Sunil Narine weave for them a 32-run win at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday.

Kolkata were sent in to bat and struggled to 140-7 in their owed quota, after which they scuppered Mumbai’s chase with usual wickets. The star actor for Shahrukh Khan’s permit was young Sunil Narine, who proved impossible to read even for the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, and ended with match figures of four for 15. He was support admirably, for once, by Lakshmipathy Balaji, who took 2 for 11 from 4 tight over’s.

The win lifted KKR to the 2nd spot on the table with 19 points - one behind league best Delhi Daredevils, a place in the play-offs now written in stone. For this most pleasant result, KKR should thank their bowlers. Chasing an apparently innocuous 141, Mumbai lost Herschelle Gibbs early – leg-before to Iqbal Abdullah - and were stupefied when Narine got a searing off-break to clatter into Tendulkar’s stumps. Dinesh Karthik and Ambati Rayudu, losses of frank indiscretion, followed quickly after, and when Kieron Pollard was caught behind off a short Jacques Kallis delivery, Mumbai were in plummet.

They lost their last 6 wickets for 12 runs, as Narine lured Harbhajan Singh with a delivery that spun away, and Rohit Sharma with one that straightened. Nobody display the stomach to hang around, and KKR romped home when R.P. Singh hocked Narine to deep mid-wicket, where he was immovable by Abdullah, as Mumbai folded for 108 in the 20th over. Kolkata, however, had begun the match terribly. They were jolted by an abominable leg-before decision and an R.P. Singh ripper as they lost two key batsmen in the 2nd over of the 1st innings, after Mumbai selected to field.

On a wicket not fairly conducive to shot-making, the visitors were pegged back by the early on double blow, and although Manoj Tiwary attempt a restructuring of the innings, Kolkata had to satisfy themselves with a total – their lowly of the season - that seemed inadequate against the might of Mumbai’s batting.R.P. Singh made early inroads and his 1st success was more fortuitous that anything else. Opener Brendon McCollum charged down the pitch and was struck on the pads.

The ball had inclined outside leg, the batsman too was a mile out of the crease, yet umpire Subroto Das raise his finger for a dreadful decision, sending the disappointed New Zealander on his way.On the next ball, R.P. knocked back Kallis' off stump, putting Kolkata in a right spot with 2 wickets down in the 2nd over. Gautam Gambhir, the man in form, also struggle for runs. He was handed 2 reprieves - by the wicketkeeper and by Tendulkar - and was lastly bowled by Kieron Pollard on 27.

Manoj Tiwary hung around, intersperse a rash of singles with a couple of fours and sixes, and was out after scoring 41. Yusuf Pathan did valuable little to salvage his poor season. The strong hitter was handed a quasi ‘life’ when he was caught off an R.P. Singh no-ball, but could not build on it, final with a laborious unbeaten 21.

Man of the match

Sunil Narine

Today Match

Kings XI v Super Kings (16:00 local | 10:30 GMT)

Daredevils v RCB (20:00 local | 14:30 GMT)

Mumbai Indians have win by a single run.

PUNE: selected Member of Parliament Sachin Tendulkar might have had the power of the world on his shoulders. How else could one give details the 35 deliveries he faced to scratch out a painstaking 34? Well, at slightest the maestro spent some time in the center, which is more that what any other Mumbai Indians batsman did.

Tendulkar stodgy knock turned out to the highest score for Mumbai in what was being promote as the ‘Maharashtra derby’, and Pune shot themselves in the foot by flaw to chase 121 on a track with some degree of sluggishness, but which was far from being the minefield their leaden-footed batsmen made it out to be.

This meant that Mumbai was able to give Pune a dose of medicine. Sourav Ganguly’s team had banned Harbhajan Singh’s men from reaching a very gettable target at the Wankhede Stadium recently, and on Thursday night Mumbai returned the favors by stall Pune one run short of enforce a Super Over. Lasith Malinga was stated Man-of-the-match for figures of 4-0-25-2, and for granting just four in a crucial 19th over.

After Harbhajan selected to bat and watched his team stutters to a sub-par total Pune made heavy weather of the chase. Robin Uthappa, Jesse Ryder, Michael Clarke and Steven Smith were all back in the tent within ten overs, with the score still under 50. At that juncture, the maudlin would have a lot to wish for. Ganguly, after all, was in the middle, and in the company of Mithun Manhas the previous India captain could still be probable to drive his team on to its 2nd win in as many matches next to their State rival.

That was not to be. Ganguly pottered about, receiving his 1st boundary off the 23rd ball he faced, but was out almost right away after, as Malinga brought a trademark in-dipper to run into into his stumps. Manhas for now outscored Tendulkar, and was finally left facing the task of getting 12 to win off Munaf Patel’s final over.

while Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s inside-out four got the home team to within one blow of the target, Pune ended one run adrift, ensuring that honours at the end of this novel rivalry remained even. The win took Mumbai to 3rd on the points table, while for Pune the loss meant that they are now just ahead of the perennially subjugated Deccan Chargers.

Player of the match

   SL Malinga

Today Match

Super Kings v Chargers (20:00 local | 14:30 GMT)

Delhi Daredevils Super Win

NEW DELHI: Virender Sehwag completes well his 1st encounter against a Rajya Sabha nominee as Delhi Daredevils wallop Mumbai Indians by 37-runs at the on Friday night.

The win took Delhi, by far the form horse of the season, to the top of the table with 12 points from 8 fixtures, a place in the last four now appear well within the realm of possibility.

Sehwag had said before the match how it would be a novel occasion playing against a likely member of the upper house – Sachin Tendulkar - and once his 39-ball 73, and Kevin Pietersen’s mind-blowing 50 runs took Delhi to 207 batting 1st the moment was made all the more memorable, as Mumbai gave up the ghost 37 runs short of the target.

The visitors, however, got it all wrong right from the start. Harbhajan Singh win the toss and selected to field, only to find the decision backfire as Sehwag, Mahela Jayewardene (55) and Pietersen (50 not out, 26b) all flaming half-centuries to hit Mumbai where it hurt – the 208 target an impossible mountain whichever way one look at it.

And when Mumbai lost Tendulkar, Aiden snowstorm and Rohit Sharma within the 1st 4 overs of the chase – with just 19 on the board – the match was likely to finish only one way. Although Ambati Rayudu 62 and Dinesh Karthik -40strove to make a first of it ask proved too much in the end, and all Delhi’s bowlers had to do was put it in the fit and wait for the batsmen to hole out.

Earlier, Delhi looked no gift horses in the mouth as Harbhajan sent them in, and directly went hell for leather. The home side posted 50 in under 6overs, 100 in 8 overs and 150 in 15 overs, not once allowing the scoring rate to dip, as 1st Sehwag and Jayewardene, and later Pietersen struck the large blows against almost the total of Mumbai’s bowling attack. But really, the writing was on the wall when Sehwag and Jayawardene joint for 135 runs in just 13.1 overs for the opening wicket.

Dinesh Karthik missed a stumping of Sehwag, off Robin Peterson; when the batsman was on 40, and the slip cost Mumbai over 30 expensive runs as the Delhi skipper went on to steal the attack with disdain.

Pollard all-round expertise. 27-run win for Mumbai Indians

MUMBAI: Kieron Pollard’s all-round proficiency and Lasith Malinga’s famed stinginess brought about a 27-run win for Mumbai Indians over Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday.This was Royals’ 1st defeat of the season, and it came to be in spite of a scorching 76 by Owais Shah as the visit side pursued in serious the imposing 198 it was set by Mumbai.

Shah, who hammered 5 sixes and as 5 fours in his 42-ball knock, alliance for 92 runs in 57 balls with Ajinkya Rahane (40, 31b) for the 3rd wicket, after captain Rahul Dravid and Shreevats Goswami had exit to Munaf Patel off straight balls in the 2nd over of the chase. Rahane last until the 12th over, before holing out to long-on (off Pollard), but Shah moved on unabated, getting 50 in 32 balls and going on a boundary-hitting spree against Harbhajan and the West Indian import.

Rajasthan Royals needed 64 from 6 overs when Malinga returned for his 2nd spell, and splayed Shah’s stumps with an intense Yorker. Johan Botha was out in the same over, and although Kevon Cooper and Ashok Menaria strike some lusty blows, ask soon spiraled beyond redress and into a bout of wickets as Pollard (4 for 44) cleaned up the tail. Munaf, who was on a hat-trick in the 2nd over, done with 4 for 28, while Malinga was stinginess personified with figures of 4-0-13-2. Munaf now holds the Purple Cap for being the highest wicket-taker so far in IPL-5.

Earlier, Mumbai total 197-6 thanks to Pollard (64, 33b, 6x4, 4x6) and Rayudu (47 no., 32b, 1x4, 3x6). The 2 got together after Richard Levi and Rohit Sharma had jump-started Mumbai, and added 96 in just 52 balls for the 4 wicket to put the home team confidently in the driver’s seat. Mumbai begin its innings with marked speed and although two fast wickets – of Levi and Rohit, both to Brad Hogg’s left-arm fare – should have most probably pegged them back, Pollard and Rayudu show no sign of letting up as the Mumbai team reached 100 in the 13th over.

The West Indian, who had been droning along well all this while, revved into action when Botha came on in the 14th over. Pollard waded into the South African, bludgeon 22 runs to boost Mumbai’s already sky-high scoring rate. Pollard reached his 50 in 31 deliveries with a sizzling straight hit off Ankeet Chavan, and followed it up with successive fours in the same over. He was lastly caught at long-on, off Chavan, after a nasty hoick failed to clear the fours.

Rayudu had kept back himself busy too, flat-batting Trivedi and Cooper for sixes to sustain the energy. Although Mumbai lost 3 batsmen in a hurry – Pollard, Dinesh Karthik and James Franklin within 10 balls of each one other – skipper Harbhajan saunter in and struck a lively 18 off 6balls. Bhajji’s cameo took Mumbai unbearably close to the magical mark of 200, leaving Royals to follow down the highest total so far of IPL-V to protect their perfect 2012 record – a mission that proved impractical for David’s men.

Thriller Win for Mumbai.

The 5th edition of the IPL, which got off to a tepid start, lastly had a nail-biter as Rohit Sharma hit the last ball the match for 6 to seal a cinematic end for Mumbai Indians against Deccan Chargers, who fought t and nail while defensive 139. Daniel Christian, not wisest choice for the last over, as very new history tells us, dished out 2 full tosses to Rohit Sharma; include the last ball which was smack over long-on with 3 needed.

A 4-wicket haul by Munaf Patel controlled Deccan Chargers to a below-par 138 for 9, giving Mumbai Indians the chance to record their 2nd win.

In the previous match at the venue, the Deccan Chargers were chasing 194. Today, they had 1st use of the pitch, but in their quest to match that score, lost early on wickets. The Chargers held back their overseas batsmen to the center order, which seem like an unforeseen event measure in case the top order failed. Munaf nipped out 2 early wickets, putting pressure on Daniel Christian and the captain Kumar Sangakkara who is himself short of runs.

Shikhar Dhawan ease those nerves, albeit briefly, with towering hits over the one side, smashing 4 sixes in the region of deep midwicket and square leg. Pragyan Ojha leaked 18 off his 1st over thanks to Dhawan's attack. However, Dhawan failed to read a slower one from Lasith Malinga in the next over and got a leading edge that swirl to Kieron Pollard at point. The Chargers' coach Darren Lehmann was seen reassuring Dhawan at the dug-out, seeming to suggest that the well-set batsman should have looked to bat from side to side the innings.

Sangakkara dismissal, however, came about next ugly scenes of the Mumbai players getting challenging with the umpires. Munaf patel bowled a low full toss which Sangakkara shaped to drive, but got inside edge which shaved stump and knocked off the bails. The wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik was standing up close and the ball deflect back to the stumps his pads, causing confusion as to whether he was legally bowled in the 1st place. The umpires at first gave Sangakkara the benefit of the doubt; choose not to refer it to the third umpire. The Mumbai players were peeved, particularly Munaf, who fling the ball on the turf as he ambled back to his mark.

An angry Harbhajan marched to the square leg umpire Johan Cloete, who was soon envelop by Munaf and Karthik, foremost to ugly scenes which put the MCC Spirit of Cricket pledge at the starting rite to distant memory. A clueless Sangakkara went across to have a word with the umpires but by then, it was as if the umpires be coerced into referring it. In theory, Sangakkara was legitimately out and the umpires must have had the presence of mind to check with. Mumbai's road-rage, though, left a shocking taste in the mouth and it make one speculate how different it could have been had Tendulkar, Mumbai's original captain, been in charge.

Cameron White and Christian additional a fast 41 for the 5th wicket, smashing 4 sixes in their stand to boost the Chargers. White looked particularly dangerous, by the crease and smashing the ball with raw authority. However, a try by Christian to clear the rope led to his dismissal, and Mumbai tighten the noose. Malinga and Pollard ran through the lower order to restrict the Chargers to an underwhelming total.

Deccan Chargers-138 for 9 Wickets

Mumbai Indians-142 for 5 Wickets

Player of the match RG Sharma (Mumbai Indians)

Today Match

RCB v KKR (16:00 local | 10:30 GMT)

Daredevils v Super Kings (20:00 local | 14:30 GMT)

Pune Warriors well started IPL

Mumbai, (IANS): Pune Warriors started their IPL campaign with a 29-run win over title favourites Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede ground on 06-04-12.

Asked to bat 1st, Pune Warriors Ended 129 for 9 in 20 overs. Mumbai Indians lost wickets at regular interval and could manage only 100 for 9 in reply. Pace bowler Ashok Dinda was the pick and chooses of the Pune Warriors bowlers, bagging four for 17.

Pune Warriors, who are in their 2nd IPL season, made a poor start but vital innings from Man of the Match Steve Smith (39) and Robin Uthappa (36) helped them to post a meek target on the board.Pune Warriors lost their top 3 batsmen for 27 runs in 5 overs. Lasith Malinga set the ball rolling, remove Manish Pandey, who didn't trouble the scorers, in the very 1st over.

Captain Sourav Ganguly (3), most important the Pune Warriors for the 1st time, was stumped by Dinesh Karthik after he came down the track to charge Mumbai Indians captain Harbhajan Singh while Wayne Parnell (11), startlingly promoted up the order, in his zeal to up the ante gone his leg stump to pacer Munaf Patel.Callum Ferguson (12) looked in touch but he was run out by straight throw from Rohit Sharma as Pune Warriors were abridged to 47 for four in 8.5 overs.

Smith and Uthappa then resurrect the innings with their 44-run stand on a slow bowling to bring Pune back on track. Uthappa hit 3 fours in his 33 ball knock. Kieron Pollard take an easy catch off his own bowling to get rid of Uthappa came from Murali Kartik (14) and a few lusty blows from Smith in the death overs catapult the Warriors to a finished score of 129.

Mumbai Indians had the worst possible opening to their chase as they lost 3 wickets in the space of 2 overs with just 5 runs on board. South African big hitter Richard Levi, who hit a half-century in the first match against Chennai Super Kings, didn't trouble the scorers and was confused by Uthappa off spin bowler Murali Kartik. In the next over, Dinda strike twice to get rid of Ambati Rayudu (1) and Rohit (1) to create kit worse for Mumbai Indians.

Dinesh Karthik (32) played a gritty hand as he forged a 49 run partnership with New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin (32). Karthik although fell quickly, stumped off the bowling of his namesake Murali Kartik, after bring Mumbai back in the chase. Franklin (32) carried on and kept Mumbai in the hunt, but after the fall of West Indian Kieron Pollard (8), the writing was on the wall.

Mumbai needing 45 off the last 3 over could manage only 15 runs as they slumped to their 1st loss in the match.

Mumbai Indians Win the IPL First match

CHENNAI: Mumbai Indians slam defending champions Chennai Super Kings by 8 wickets to get the Indian Premier League 2012 started at the M.A. Chidambaram here 04-04-12

The Champions League winners overhaul the paltry 113 target with 19 balls to standby, as their latest gaining – South African player Richard Levi – irritating a racy 50runs on IPL debut. Levi’s firework at the top of the order took Mumbai to 69 in a shade under 8 over’s – by which time the match had finished as a contest.

A share of the credit must go to Mumbai Indians bowling, which was at its warning best against a bizarrely clueless Chennai batting order on a track with bizarre tennis ball bounce – as Sunil Gavaskar describe it. The visiting side elected to field, and disallowed the title holder to get a move on. Only Suresh Raina (36) cross 20 as Chennai huffed and panting against Lasith Malinga, Kieran Pollard and Pragyan Ojha, who in concert claimed six victims while conceding just 48 runs in 11.5 over’s.

The 2nd innings belonged to Levi. The 24-year-old — scorer of the fastest T20I century — spared no bowler in his offensive. He began by picking fours off Doug Bollinger and the attack reached a crescendo when Ravindra Jadeja came on to bowl. Chennai’s only get in the latest auction was taken for 16 in his 1st and only over of the match.

Levi strike another 6 in the next over – against R. Ashwin – and a 3rd maximum in the over that followed – bowled by Dwayne Bravo – to reach his 50 runs in 34 balls on IPL debut. He was out as he went after Bravo again, but by that time his part of the bargain was struck, and then some. At the other end, Sachin Tendulkar was not quite a mute spectator to the butchery. The expert had faced just 12 balls to Richard Levi  35, but had made them count, none in a more telling manner than the one hurled by Albie Morkel which was dismiss for an exquisite cover-driven six.

Rohit Sharma depart for a blob and quickly after Tendulkar retired hurt on 16, after Bollinger rap him on the finger, leaving Mumbai 41 to win in 11 over’s. Like in many IPL home games, Mahindra Singh Dhoni sensed an opening and look to his slow bowlers to pry it open further. He deploy a slip for Jakati and packed the ring with fielders – but the ask for Mumbai did not need any recourse to the think and the target was achieve without drama, as Ambati Rayudu and James Franklin stuck to the charge at hand.

Earlier, Mumbai let CSK begin their campaign in the normal way – batting 1st on a relaid wicket the nature of which would be unearthing only once an innings was finished. Taking strike 1st turned out to be Chennai Super Kings last hurrah as the batsmen struggle from the get go. Rayudu swoop down from extra cover and curtailed FAF du Plessis’ debut with a straight hit in the 1st over, and the full house in attending had to wait 20 deliveries for the 1st fours – an inside-out punch by Suresh Raina, all the way over long-off.

Murali Vijay nonstop his wretched form, scratching around before beating James Franklin into the hands of mid-wicket. Then began the lone Brilliant phase for Chennai, as IPL large Suresh Raina got together with Dwayne Bravo. The two added 37 in 4 over’s, taking Chennai to the brink of a revival, before Pragyan Ojha dismiss both in successive overs.

Raina was done in by a wider offering that was slashed to sweeper cover. In his next over, Bravo walloped the left-arm spinner, but a marginal impairment in timing cause the ball to come to rest too early in the shovel-like hands of Pollard at long-on.

Chennai lost its last 8wickets for just 37 runs, as batsmen at home and departed with the frequency of a Metro train. 2 more run-outs followed – accounting for Dhoni and R. Ashwin – and really the flow of wickets had extra to do with Chennai playing directly into the hands of the field than with anything special on the part of the bowlers.