On a two-paced surface, Chennai Super Kings posted 180/7 – which was a competitive total. However, Sunrisers Hyderabad, led by fine knocks from Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen, surpassed the total with an over to spare, to secure their qualification to the playoffs.
CSK struggles with it's batting order
Ishan Kishan and Heinrich Klaasen. They took charge at different times, but their 75-run stand followed by Ishan’s flourish ensured that despite the rising required rate, SRH were never pushed out of the chase.It wasn’t the most fluent knock from Kishan, but he provided the tempo that was needed to the chase.
Ruturaj Gaikwad took a long breath and waited for the crowd cheers to halt when Ravi Shastri asked if MS Dhoni will play the game against SRH. Much to the crowd’s disappointment, the CSK skipper announced, “He’s not fit enough to play this game. Hopefully we win this one and you’ll never know in the last game.”
Citing the dry surface, another interesting call taken at the toss, was the decision to bat. The last time they made such a decision at home was three years ago.
Sanju Samson pumped the first legitimate delivery of the innings for a six down the ground, and then followed that up by tucking the next away for a boundary. He provided CSK a brisk start early on. Even as his innings lasted only 13 balls, the early blitz provided by him, offered CSK a much-needed momentum. Urvil Patel too deposited a couple of deliveries past the boundary ropes, but his struggles became evident against the slower deliveries which Pat Cummins used adequately.
Their big hits early on were especially handy as Ruturaj Gaikwad found himself without an answer to the use of cutters by the SRH pacers. His innings was cut short in the 12th over – for a painful 21-ball 15 – after he mistimed a pull to deep mid wicket.
On a surface where the ball wasn’t coming on easily, most batters struggled to find their timing. Turning the strike over was becoming just as difficult as hitting the ball past the ropes. However, Kartik Sharma and Dewald Brevis made good use of whatever opportunities that came their way. Apart from being quick to dispatch the full length deliveries, Kartik also managed to get under the ball and power them past the ropes against Praful Hinge. However, in an attempt to dispatch Cummins, he became the second victim of the SRH skipper, in the 8th over.
Despite Gaikwad’s struggles, at the fall of his wicket, CSK were in a fairly decent position courtesy the early attack. However, it was the 59-run stand between Dewald Brevis and Shivam Dube that laid the foundation for an impressive total by CSK. It started with the two taking apart Nitish Kumar for 18 runs in the 14th over, throwing the seamer off his lines and lengths. But it was the 16th over when Brevis really imposed himself by nailing a six off Cummins, and following it up by flicking him for a boundary. Cummins, who had conceded 16 runs and picked three wickets in his first overs, was taken apart for 12 to end his spell.
As the bowlers repeatedly mixed their pace, big hits continued to come at a premium. Both Brevis and Dube departed in their bid to go big. Brevis went late into a pull and Dube was cleaned up after getting foxed by a slower one. Nonetheless, the odd boundaries kept coming and the hosts managed to take their side to a competitive score on a challenging surface.
The Ishan Kishan show yet again
If Sunrisers Hyderabad needed to make the target easier, the best bet was to take advantage of the new ball, just like Samson had done earlier in the evening. While Abhishek did strike a couple of fours in the opening over, the big shots didn’t come as easily. Head fell early, but Kishan walked in with the intent to dominate. While his first boundary came through an edge, he placed a couple of more cleverly, he helped SRH pick 12 runs from the fourth over. With the ball holding up a bit, the usually destructive SRH top-order, however, struggled to explode the way they usually like.
By the time Abhishek departed, sweeping Akeal Hosein to fine leg in the eighth over, the required rate had mounted to more than 10-an-over.
On a surface where most batters struggled to come to terms with the pace, Klaasen looked one of the most assured batters. He got going by cutting Noor for a boundary, and then following it up by reverse sweeping Akeal Hosein for a four. He then lofted the spinner for a six. His timing was clean, and just as he was breaking free, he swept Noor straight to the fielder at deep square leg. However, a diving Spencer Johnson, who came to take a diving catch, spilled it.
Needless to say, it proved costly. They got the momentum they needed as Klaasen smashed his way to a 26-ball 47, and added a 75-run stand with Kishan off only 41 balls.
For a game that came to be defined by the batter’s struggles to middle the ball, three boundaries late in SRH’s innings came to seal the contest.
With 23 needed off 14 balls, the game still hung in the balance, cantering around at the required rate that had come to define the innings. With Mukesh Chaudhary’s line of operation – away from the batter’s hitting arc – obvious, Ishan Kishan moved towards the offside and crunched a powerful shot down the ground. He ended the over with a powerful pull over deep square leg. Kishan departed in the next over as Anshul Kamboj made a fine comeback after being smashed for a six, but it was too late by then. Smaran Ravichandran hit a boundary off the last ball of the over to help SRH over the line.
SCORECARD: Chennai Super Kings 180/7 in 20 overs (Dewald Brevis 44 [27], Kartik Sharma 32 [19], Sanju Samson 27 [13]; Pat Cummins 3-28, Eshan Malinga 1-26) lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad 181/5 in 19 overs (Ishan Kishan 70 [47], Heinrich Klaasen 47 [26]; Mukesh Choudhary 2-36)