IPL 2018, CSK vs DD: Hits and Misses

In Chennai Super Kings’ fourth home game of the season (third in Pune), Delhi Daredevils skipper Shreyas Iyer won the toss and put CSK into bat first.

The ‘Men in Yellow’ started slowly as they got to 25/0 but Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis took the attack to the DD bowlers as they 78 runs in the next seven overs.

Despite the losing a couple of wickets in quick succession, CSK didn’t slow down as Watson went on to score a brutal 78.

And then it was MS Dhoni who finished off in style as he struck a sensational 22-ball 51. Ambati Rayudu also scored a nice cameo as he made 41 in 22 balls which propelled CSK to 211 in their 20 overs.

In reply, DD got off to a good start but they lost wickets at regular intervals. Rishabh Pant was the only batsman who was looking good and was the only DD batsman who got some momentum into the innings.

He struck an excellent 79 and despite Vijay Shankar’s late blitz wasn’t enough as 212 proved to be too much.

It gave CSK their sixth win of the season and they once again jumped up to the top of the points table.

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#5 Hit: Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant was brilliant with the bat

After a good start to this IPL, Rishabh Pant failed in the last couple of games (scoring 4 and 0).

However, he was the lone shining light of DD’s batting performance as he scored a very good 79.

He was the only batsman who was looking good in the middle and looked to offer a fight after DD had lost three wickets in seven overs.

He walked out with the score reading 46/2 in five overs. He started with a bang as he whipped an outside off-stump length over mid-on for six.

He then struck a boundary to race off to 10 in two balls. Pant seemed to be in destructive mood but with wickets falling around him, he could quite launch himself.

Pant fought a lone battle as he struck a 45-ball 79 as he tried to take Delhi as close to CSK’s score. The Delhi wicket-keeper batsman struck seven fours and a couple of sixes.

#4 Miss: Liam Plunkett

After a couple of impressive performance, Plunkett was very expensive here

Liam Plunkett has been a very good addition to the Delhi Daredevils squad. He was brought in as the replacement for South African quick Kagiso Rabada who suffered a back injury.

The Yorkshire fast bowler had an excellent debut as he took 3/17 against Kings XI Punjab. He then had a decent second game where he didn’t pick up a wicket but conceded just 24 runs in his four overs.

Plunkett was once again going to be the key against a strong CSK batting line-up on a good batting track.

However, he was taken for a lot of runs as he gave 52 runs in his three overs. He came on to bowl in the fifth over of the innings and it was this over that changed the momentum of the innings.

He conceded three sixes in his first over and then a couple more in his next and had figures of 0/35 in his two overs.

He then bowled the 18th over and once again was expensive as he was taken for 17 runs.

Plunkett had a forgettable day as he conceded 52 runs in his three overs.

#3 Hit: MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni was once again at his brutal best

Dhoni seems to be in sensational form. He is just scoring and finishing games/innings once again on a regular basis.

His unbeaten 70 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) took CSK to a memorable win from a very difficult situation.

Even in this game, he was superb as he struck a blistering 22-ball 51. Coming into bat in the 14th over, Dhoni once again took a little bit of time at the start as he reached five in six balls.

However, he exploded once he got his eye in as he took the attack to Boult and scored a couple of sixes and a four to kick-start CSK’s death overs charge.

He was dropped on 31 in the 19th over but he made DD pay for the missed chance as he went on to score his third half-century of this IPL.

It was also Dhoni’s second-fastest IPL fifty. He was brutal and dismissive as along with Rayudu, Dhoni helped CSK get 74 runs in the last five overs.

#2 Miss: Dwayne Bravo

The DD batsmen took the attack to Bravo in this game

Dwayne Bravo has been Chennai’s go-to bowler, especially at the death. His variations have been very good and have been one CSK’s best bowler at the death.

In this tournament, Bravo has been superb. He’s got runs when the team required and has picked up wickets at crucial stages of the game.

In this game against Delhi Daredevils, Bravo didn’t get to bat as the CSK batting top-order fired and helped them get to a mammoth total.

With the ball, Bravo was introduced only in 15th over and conceded 11 runs each in his first two overs.

He then conceded three sixes in his third over and gave away 21 runs to finish with 0/43 in his three overs.

It was a poor outing for Bravo with the ball as he went at an economy of 14.33.

#1 Hit: Shane Watson

Watson looked set to get his second hundred of the season but was out for 78

After his blistering hundred against Rajasthan Royals, Shane Watson tapered away as he could only manage 28 runs in the last three games. He didn’t pick a wicket as well in those three games. His form had certainly dipped.

However, he roared back into with a brutal 78. The former Australian all-rounder rode his luck and escaped with a touch-and-go decision off the first ball of the game.

But that didn’t affect him as he started slowly getting to 11 in nine balls but what followed was absolute carnage.

He hit with four sixes off Plunkett in two overs before getting stuck into Rahul Tewatia. He got to fifty in just 25 deliveries and looked set for another big score.

However, he fell for 78 and missed out on a well-deserved ton as was out trying to up the ante. Watson struck four fours and seven sixes as he gave CSK an excellent start. And he also won the Man of the Match for his blistering knock.

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