IPL 2020: 'We were a little bit all over the place' - Stephen Fleming on CSK's death bowling against RCB

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) coach Stephen Fleming stated that his team's bowlers were not consistent enough in the death overs in their encounter against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) yesterday.

He made this observation at the post-match press conference after the Men on Yellow's massive defeat against the Virat Kohli-led team.

On being asked about CSK having conceded 66 runs in the last four overs of their bowling effort, Fleming credited Virat Kohli and Shivam Dube for their excellent batting while acknowledging that their bowlers were not consistent with their lines.

"It was some good batting but we probably didn't go wide enough. We got caught between two methods it felt. So, we were a little bit all over the place."

He added that the CSK bowlers gave a good account of themselves until this match, but could not adjust to the conditions and wilted under pressure against RCB.

"Our death bowling has been pretty good until this point, it has been one of the positives of our campaign. But under pressure today, we got a little bit confused with the long boundaries and the pace of the wicket, trying to find the right technique and we ended up in between, we were neither wide nor straight, which allowed them to hit."

---

Stephen Fleming on the CSK batting effort

Stephen Fleming believes CSK lost MS Dhoni's wicket at a critical juncture

While talking about the CSK batting, Stephen Fleming admitted that they are overly dependent on Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis at the top of the order. He said that they are still looking for solutions to their middle-order issues.

"We are aware that if we don't get a good start at the top with our two overseas players, we are falling into a hole. So, we are looking for positive solutions."

He pointed out that CSK lost the wickets of MS Dhoni and Sam Curran at a crucial juncture in yesterday's encounter, just when they were looking to push the accelerator.

The IPL purple cap 2020 list has been updated, check here.

"But again today the wickets fell right on the line, whether it is going to be a Dhoni or a Sam Curran. There are lines on the sand when we move into the next phase and we are losing wickets right on the edge of those."

IPL 13: Over bowled to MS Dhoni was very crucial, says ChahalRead @ANI Story | https://t.co/VhdJxXZgO0 pic.twitter.com/Vl6qR9OYdp

— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) October 11, 2020

The former Kiwi opener acknowledged that the CSK batsmen lacked intensity in the middle overs, thereby allowing the required run rate to reach dangerous proportions.

"It makes it look quite conservative but the talk is very positive. I would like a little more intensity in the middle overs. We have got plenty of batting and while we are recovering pretty well, we are just leaving too much to do at the back."

Stephen Fleming signed off by stating that they are trying to bat more freely and even brought in Narayan Jagadeesan for Kedar Jadhav to trigger a change.

"So we are trying to release the shackles, whoever it is, and we obviously made a change today and just allow the hitters towards the end a little more freedom."

#IPL2020 #CSK Chennai Super Kings faced their fifth loss of the season on Saturday when they conceded a 37-run defeat to the Royal Challengers Bangalore. #CricketDhamaka https://t.co/wEDRv1CkdO

— IndiaTVSports (@IndiaTVSports) October 11, 2020

The CSK batsmen have not been able to gain any momentum in their middle overs, especially when Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis have not got them off to a flying start. In yesterday's encounter against RCB, they did not hit a six in the first 15 overs and left 74 runs to be scored in the last 5 overs.