CSK VS KKR: Chennai hammered Kolkata Knight Riders’ chances of Playoffs. Match no 49: Dream11 IPL 2020 Chennai hammered Kolkata Knight Riders’ Playoff campaign.
Match Highlights:
Chennai Super Kings defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by 6 wickets in the 49th Match of Dream11 IPL 2020. Dubai International Stadium hosted the match and it turned out to be the last ball thriller. Ruturaj Gaikwad (72 of 53 balls) and Ravindra Jadeja (31 of 11 balls) starring with the bat for Chennai Super Kings. Ravindra Jadeja held his nerves till the last ball of the game helped Chennai Super Kings win the encounter by 6 wickets.
Earlier, Chennai Super Kings won the toss and decided to ball first. KKR openers looked solid at the start, Shubman Gill and Nitish Rana scored 53 runs before the first wicket. Shubman Gill scored 26(17) runs, Nitish Rana played his career-best innings of 87(61) which includes 10 boundaries and 4 maximums. Sunil Narine scored 7(7), Rinku Singh 11(11) and skipper Eoin Morgan 15(12) went cheaply off Santner, Jadeja and Lungi Ngidi respectively. A late cameo from Dinesh Kartik 21(11) helped KKR reach 172-5 in 20 overs.
CSK could not provide an ideal start as Opener Shane Watson failed to impress. Shane Watson 14(19) was dismissed by Varun Chakravarthy. Young Ruturaj Gaikwad played beautifully 72(53) which includes 6 fours and 2 sixes. Ambati Rayudu 38(20) with 5 fours and 1 six dismissed by Pat Cummins. MS Dhoni once again could not finish innings for his side. He was dismissed by Varun Chakravarthy. Some wrist movement from Ravindra Jadeja at the end helped Chennai dent KKRs’ playoffs hope. His unbeaten 31(11) which includes 2 sixes of the last 2 balls ensured that good innings from Ruturaj didn’t go in vain.
Post Match Presentation:
Eoin Morgan, KKR skipper: I think we played really well there, just on the wrong side of the toss. The dew from about the 8th over was really challenging. We improved on our batting (as compared to the previous games). Our bowlers absolutely gave it their everything. We have one game left, and still have a very little chance. We felt we were right in the game (at the halfway stage). Nitish Rana kicked on and showed his class once again. It was actually a good day for us with the bat. They (Narine and Varun) are two fantastic spinners. I can’t fault anyone’s effort tonight. He (Nagarkoti) didn’t have enough runs to defend. He’s a young guy, he will take it on the chin and move forward. Looking forward to the next game against Royals.
Ravindra Jadeja: I was hitting the ball well in the nets and kept thinking about that and I managed to do that in the match. We (me and Curran) were talking about going after the bowlers, and in the last 12 balls you don’t think much. Just see the ball and hit the ball. I was looking to not loose my shape, and I knew if they bowled in my arc, I could hit a six. Winning every game always means a lot to us.
MS Dhoni, CSK skipper: I think it was one game in which the climax went in our favour. Lot of credit to the guys. This season he (Jadeja) has been fantastic. He has been the only one in our team who has scored in the death overs. He needed somebody else and that would have been good for us. We want to give games to people who haven’t played. Ruturaj has shown the talent that he is. He came in and got positive with Covid. We didn’t have much time to have a look at him. He is one of the talented youngsters going around. He is not someone who speaks a lot. Once you go inside, you are the only one handling the pressure. When we made him play the first game, he stepped out and got out. But one ball is never enough. I think it is very exciting how he has grabbed his chances. It is very important to be relevant in the tournament. It was very important for us to give it our best. We are not in a position to qualify for the next stage but we have had a glimpse of people who can play for us in the coming seasons.
Ruturaj Gaikwad, Man of the Match: It is feeling good. Pretty confident as well. I have backed myself. Both the innings when I got out early, I knew the situation was a little tough. Covid has made me tough. As our captain says, face every situation with a smile. I stayed positive and didn’t think much about the future.
Twitter Reactions:
Great finish! Jadeja has finished so well this year
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) October 29, 2020
Sir Ravindra Jadeja. Take a bow 🙇
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) October 29, 2020
CSK ke liye bhavishya mein RUTU RAJ karenge… #wellplayed #RuturajGaikwad
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) October 29, 2020
Well done my brother @imjadeja What incredible contribution. Superbly done Bapu ! #CSKvKKR 😍
— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) October 29, 2020
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