Chennai Super Kings edge past Kolkata Knight Riders in the last ball thriller at Dubai. MS Dhoni’s men register back to back wins in IPL 2020.
In a tense match, it was an onslaught from Ravindra Jadeja at the end who took his side home in an exciting clash. The all-rounder scored 31 in just 11 balls and fittingly sealed the win with a six.
Chennai Super Kings Win Against Kolkata Knight Riders
Chasing a target 173, it was Ruturaj Gaikwad once again for CSK who carried on from where he left in the last match and batted superbly. The opener scored his second consecutive half-century of the season and showcased his spark once again.
However, in the latter stages of the match, KKR made an excellent comeback courtesy of Varun Chakravarthy. The proficient spinner produced a brilliant 4 overs spell and gave away just 20 runs. He also picked 2 wickets including that of MS Dhoni which turned the tide in favour of KKR.
It got tricky for CSK when Gaikwad was bowled for 72 by Pat Cummins. Although when it mattered the most Jadeja put his hand and played perfect finishers knock and won the match for CSK.
MS Dhoni Praises Jadeja And Gaikwad
Earlier in the match, KKR were able to post a competitive total 172-5. Nitish Rana once more flourished as an opening batsman and scored a fine 87 from 61 balls. Eventually, it was last few overs of fast bowling of KKR that let them down and the match slipped away from their grasp.
After CSK’s victory over KKR, defending champions Mumbai Indians have become the first team to qualify for the IPL 2020 playoffs. Here’s what the winning captain MS Dhoni said in the post-match presentation.
“I think it was one game where the plans went in our favour. Needed a lot of effort from the players. Really glad the coin fell in our favour. This season Jadeja has been fantastic. He’s been the only batsman in our team who has taken the job of scoring in the last few overs. We want to give games to people who haven’t played and we need them to grab those opportunities”.
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“Ruturaj we’d seen him in the nets, but then he got Covid positive and took 20 days. Unfortunate but he’ll remember this season. He’s one of the most talented players going around. What makes it difficult is he’s not somebody who speaks a lot! So sometimes it becomes difficult for the management to gauge a player. Once he started going in the innings, you could see that he was hitting the ball the way he wants to and he was planning. When we made him play the first game, he got out, stepped out. It becomes difficult to tell whether it was the pressure that made him step out or whether that’s his natural game”.
“One ball isn’t enough. We haven’t performed in the tournament but we felt it’s important to be relevant in the tournament. That’s what we kept requesting the guys. We said you prepare how you want to, but 3-3.5 hours give your best. We are not in the position to qualify and there’s plenty of takeaways and at the same time it gives a glimpse”, said MS Dhoni.
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