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Chennai Super Kings (CSK) got off the mark in IPL 2021 with a six-wicket triumph over Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
After pacer Deepak Chahar scythed through the PBKS batting line-up with magnificent figures of 4 for 13, CSK's batters did the job without much fuss.
Needing a paltry 107 to win, CSK got off to a slow start. Faf du Plessis (36 not out) broke the shackles by scooping Jhye Richardson for a maximum in the fourth over. However, a struggling Ruturaj Gaikwad (5 off 16) perished soon after to Arshdeep Singh, dragging a short ball to deep midwicket.
Moeen Ali (46 off 31) came in and eased the nerves for CSK, if there were any. The second ball he faced from Riley Meredith was driven between cover and mid-off. The last ball of the over was eased between cover-point and point for the second four in the over.
After a short ball from Arshdeep Singh was slammed over short midwicket, Ali drove a fuller one from Meredith through the covers.
CSK went to the first strategic time-out at 53 for 1 after nine overs. When play resumed, CSK continued to enjoy themselves. A short ball from leg-spinner Murugan Ashwin was crunched to the boundary by Du Plessis.
PBKS captain KL Rahul was forced to bring back Mohammed Shami for his second spell earlier than expected, doing so in the 11th over. That didn’t make much difference to Ali, though, who cracked a short ball to the deep midwicket fence. The last ball of the over was beautifully punched for another four through the offside.
As CSK eased towards their target, Ali whacked a tossed up delivery from Ashwin over wide long-on for a six. He fell to the spinner in the same over, though, going for another big one, but by then, the left-hander had more than done his job.
Suresh Raina (8) perished to a short ball from Shami, edging to the wicketkeeper. Shami had two in two when Ambati Rayudu hit another rising delivery straight up in the air. But the outcome of the game was a foregone conclusion by then.
Deepak Chahar claims four as CSK hold PBKS to 106 for 8
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) medium pacer Deepak Chahar ran through the Punjab Kings (PBKS) bowling line-up with exceptional figures of 4 for 13. PBKS could never recover from Chahar’s blows and crawled to 106 for 8.
Sent into bat after losing the toss, PBKS got off to a poor start, courtesy of a ripper by Chahar to Mayank Agarwal (0). A length delivery pitched on middle stump and nipping away squared up Agarwal, who lost his off-stump.
A moment of indecision then cost PBKS captain KL Rahul (5) his wicket. Rahul and Chris Gayle tried to steal a quick single, but CSK’s best fielder, Ravindra Jadeja, ran in from short cover and threw down the stumps at the striker's end to catch Rahul short of his crease.
Gayle, who was dropped by Ruturaj Gaikwad in the first over, also perished to Chahar for 10. The left-hander chipped a knuckleball in the air, and Jadeja again came into the picture from short cover, diving full length to take a brilliant catch.
Nicholas Pooran (0) lasted only two balls. He took his eyes off a well-directed short one from Chahar and only guided the ball to long leg, where Shardul Thakur did not have to move an inch.
Chahar picked up his fourth of the game in his last over when Deepak Hooda (10) gave some catching practice to mid-off. An away-swinging delivery was hit straight to the fielder as the CSK pacer ended his spell with a wicket-maiden.
Jhye Richardson (15) hung around for a while before being cleaned up by Moeen Ali, going for a pull off a ball that wasn’t short enough.
Shahrukh Khan (47) stood out among the ruins for PBKS. He hit four fours and two sixes as he attempted his best to bring some stability to the PBKS innings. In Jadeja’s first over, Shahrukh Khan pulled a rank long hop for a maximum.
When Moeen Ali tossed an off-break, Khan deposited him over midwicket for a six. Another short ball from Shardul Thakur was pulled with conviction over midwicket for a four. When Dwayne Bravo came in, Khan swung a slower ball to long-on for another boundary.
Shahrukh Khan deserved a fifty but fell three short. He perished in the last over, top-edging an off-cutter from Sam Curran.
IPL 2021: PBKS vs CSK - Man of the Match
CSK medium-pacer Deepak Chahar set up the match beautifully for his team. He got Mayank Agarwal with a peach of a delivery that would have got most good batsmen out.
Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran and Deepak Hooda all perished to his guile. Chahar never gave PBKS any breathing space during his probing spell.
Shahrukh Khan was the lone man standing for PBKS with the bat. He was defiant in the wake of a disaster and gave a pretty good account of himself with a fluent 47 under pressure.
When CSK batted, Moeen Ali chipped in with a fluent 46 off 31. However, the Man of the Match choice was an easy one - Deepak Chahar - for his match-winning four-wicket haul.
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