IPL2020, CSK vs KXIP Highlights: Chennai pulls Punjab out of the tournament, as they registered a third consecutive win. Dream11 IPL 2020, Chennai pulls Punjab out of the tournament, as they registered a third consecutive win in 53rd Match of Indian Premier League.
Highlights(CSK vs KXIP):
Ruturaj Gaikwad shines with the bat for Chennai Super Kings, as they clinched their third consecutive victory in their last game of the tournament. CSK hasn’t had a good start to the season with multiple back to back losses, but they somehow found the right playing 11 and now they have ended their tournament on a high. Three back to back wins against RCB, KKR and KXIP.
Earlier, MS Dhoni won the toss and choose to field first to take into consideration of the dew factor. KL Rahul led KXIP looked in good touch in the first few overs. Mayank Aggarwal was back into the squad, both the openers KL Rahul and Mayank Aggarwal were successful in giving a steady start. But Lungi Ngidi removed both Mayank Aggarwal(26 off 15) and KL Rahul(29 off 27).
CSK bowlers didn’t allow any batsmen to get settled and play the knock. Wickets were falling in succession and KXIP were in the backfoot now. Deepak Hodda showed his class against the lethal bowling of CSK. He scored 62 off 30 balls, hitting 3 fours and 4 maximums in his innings. His under pressure knock of 62 guided KXIP to a total of 153 – 6 in 20 overs.
However, the Chennai bowling attack was good throughout. Lungi Ngidi picked 3 wickets, Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja and Imran Tahir picked one wicket each to finish on a high.
MS Dhoni-led CSK who was earlier struggling with opening combination, however, got a perfect pair now. Faf-du plessis and Ruturaj Gaikwad batted sensibly at the start and both made a brilliant 82 runs stand for the opening wicket for Chennai. Later on, in the innings, Chris Jordan was able to pick Faf-du plessis when he was about to reach his half-century. Faf scored 48 runs from 34 balls.
Ruturaj was standing tall on the other end. He was unbeaten on 62 off 49 balls and Ambati Rayudu also contributed by 30 runs in 30 balls to seal the match for CSK. As they win their last match of the season by 9 wickets.
One main factor for CSK in the past three consecutive wins has been Ruturaj Gaikwad’s performances. The young guy scored consecutive half-centuries in the last three games for CSK. His impact on CSK is clearly seen. Definitely, one good thing to take from the tournament for CSK.
Post Match Presentation(CSK vs KXIP):
KL Rahul | Losing captain:
It is as simple as that. We didn’t bat really well. Big pressure game and we expected 180-190 on the board, unfortunately we couldn’t soak in the pressure and get a big total. Disappointed but that’s how IPL goes. We didn’t have results going our way in the first half. The team still felt we were playing good cricket. We were patchy at times with the bowling and the batting didn’t come together in the first half, we started doing well in the second half and really proud that we gave ourselves an opportunity to come into the top four. Unfortunate that today and yesterday’s game didn’t go our way but proud of the team. Hopefully come back stronger next year and forget this year. If you look back at it , we had a lot of games in our pocket but we couldn’t get over the line. We only have ourselves to blame. At the start of the tournament, that short run has come back to bite us very hard. We all make mistakes and we have made a few this season. We need to accept it, learn from it and come back stronger.
Faf du Plessis:
Sorry Danny I would like to give you a bat but I only get so many bats. That scoop is the shot I play often and quite bummed that I couldn’t get it but pleased for us to finish the season with a win. He (Gaikwad) looks like a young Virat Kohli doesn’t he. What stands out for me the most is is his composure. Pressure situations don’t really get to him. That is always pleasing to see in a young guy and looks like he has a bright future. I am still loving it. I have got a lot of cricket left in me, at least five years.
MS Dhoni | Winning captain:
It was a difficult campaign for us. I don’t think we played to the full potential. We did commit a lot of errors at different points in the tournament. The last four games, it could be a template as to where we would have liked ourselves to be. If you are lagging behind too much, it becomes very difficult to push yourself and come out with performances. That’s where each and everyone had to contribute. Very proud the way they played their cricket. It would have been very tough 6-7 games. You won’t want to be in a dressing room that is not really enjoying cricket. You want to keep coming up with new formulas and new theories, but if the dressing room atmosphere is not happy, it becomes very tough. A lot depends on what the BCCI decides on the auction. We need to slightly change our core group and look for the next ten years. At the start of the IPL, we made a team and it served well for us. There comes a time where you have to shift a bit, change a bit and hand it over to the next generation. That’s what will be the policy, try to form a strong core group. (Message to the fans) We’ll come back strong, that’s what we are known for. This has been a tough year. This is one of the seasons where most of the teams played well. Or you can say one team played brilliantly which is Mumbai Indians and the rest all have played badly to be in the big cluster. So, it depends on how you want to look at it. There’s definitely a lot of positives. (Many players receiving his jersey) Maybe they thought I am retiring. Whenever we have seen him (Ruturaj Gaikwad) bat, he’s somebody somebody who has batted well. We were not able to see a lot of him in the games. Right at the start of the season, it was a very tough period where he got COVID and was out. Even after 20 days, he wasn’t fit. He didn’t get a lot of practice where we would have loved to see him bat. Even if he’d got 15-20 runs in his first game, it gives you a glimpse. That was one of the main reasons we kept going with Faf and Watson. It didn’t work but I don’t think it was bad. That’s the point where you say I’ll go with the experienced guys and try to come back into tournament. It’s (IPL 2021) only a few months from now, that’s a good thing and hopefully no lockdown so you can put in a lot of pressure on the skill aspect. A lot can be planned provided there’s no lockdown.
Ruturaj Gaikwad | Player of the Match:
I was scoring well in the domestic circuit in every format, so I was feeling confident. Even for my club and state team, I had to be the anchor, make sure the team wins and I stay till the end. At times, I also need to be aggressive. One of my favourite – inside-out (shot). Not to be part of the squad which was practising initially, to miss the first few games, it was difficult for me. But the management and every team mate made sure that I was positive. Important part of the squad and it did help a lot. Being in the change room and being on the field – I was used to it. One or two games, it was surreal (playing with the star players). Even yesterday I saying to Rayudu – ‘it’s the first time I am batting with you, you are my hero,’ and he was happy for that.
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