This was Chennai Super Kings (CSK) following the playbook at home with aplomb. Unlike the batting-friendly surfaces on offer in Chennai earlier this season — far from the norm over the years — the 22-yard strip for the game between CSK and Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Sunday afternoon was sluggish and ripe for a low-scoring game. In such circumstances, CSK are usually invincible.
And CSK did just as expected — notch up a fairly comfortable five-wicket win at the MA Chidambaram Stadium with 10 balls to spare. While pacer Simarjeet Singh (4-0-26-3) was the pick of the CSK bowlers and choked Rajasthan to 141/5, skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad saw the chase through by staying unbeaten on 42 (41 balls, 1×4, 2×6). The result helps CSK move to third with 14 points after 13 matches. RR have 16 points from 12 matches, but a third consecutive defeat means they are yet to seal a playoff berth.
Having seen the Rajasthan batters struggle to raise the tempo, CSK knew they had to take advantage of the fielding restrictions in the chase. The Kiwi pair of Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell facilitated that even as Gaikwad anchored the innings, helping CSK move to 56/1 after six overs. With only 86 more runs needed in 14 overs with nine wickets in hand, it should have been a walk in the park for the hosts from thereon.
The nature of the pitch, however, enabled Rajasthan’s bowlers to create some uncertainty in the middle overs. While Yuzvendra Chahal trapped Mitchell leg-before in the eighth over, Moeen Ali succumbed to the growing pressure — CSK had gone 32 balls without a boundary at the time of his dismissal. It eventually became 39, leaving CSK with 50 runs to get off 42 balls.
That is when Shivam Dube stepped up to bring the asking rate down even further. Known to be destructive against spin, he was exactly that as R Ashwin was flayed for a six and two fours. Although Ashwin tossed one up later in the 14th over to get Dube caught at long-on, the left-hand batter’s 11-ball 18 was enough to ease the nerves in the CSK camp.
Rajasthan were set back by the laboured start to their batting effort. Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal ensured they didn’t lose a wicket in the first six overs, but at no stage during their opening partnership did they threaten to take the game away. At 42/0 after six overs, well short of the powerplay scores that have become de rigueur this year, it was clear that they had to get going soon. Jaiswal tried to go after Simarjeet in the seventh over, but it was not for the first time this season that he was dismissed trying to pull a back-of-a-length delivery.
Buttler fell to the same bowler two overs later. Perhaps under pressure to manufacture a boundary, he moved across his stumps for an attempted ramp. But with Tushar Deshpande stationed on the long leg boundary, it was always a risk. It turned out to be so as Deshpande covered a few yards to his right to complete a fine catch.
That the ball wasn’t quite coming onto the bat was apparent when Sanju Samson and Riyan Parag were batting. Both are excellent players of spin and have the firepower to unleash the big shots in the middle phase, but they couldn’t find their timing.
The situation could have worsened for the visitors in the 12th over when Parag miscued a reverse sweep off Ravindra Jadeja to Maheesh Theekshana at deep backward point. Much to the relief of the batter and the RR dugout though, the Sri Lankan spilled a straightforward catch. Even though Parag made Ravindra Jadeja pay with a slog sweep for six over midwicket in the bowler’s next over, the big over that RR were searching for never really arrived.
Samson also fell to Simarjeet, after not getting enough elevation on his shot to clear Gaikwad at mid-off. It left the onus of delivering a strong finish on Parag and Dhruv Jurel, and while they added 40 runs in 29 balls for the fourth wicket, CSK were always in control of the proceedings.