Abu Dhabi: Ambati Rayudu’s sensational knock 71 off 48 and Faf du Plessis brilliant 58 off 44 not out and four in the 2nd ball of the last over of Trent Boult helped CSK win by 5 wickets against MI in the opener of the IPL here at Sheikh Zayed Stadium on Saturday.
Chasing a target of 163 set by MI, CSK scored 166/5 in 19.2 overs.
In the end it was du Plessis and Dhoni not out with du Plessis hitting Trent Boult for four in the last over taking CSK to victory over their rival MI.
Ambati Rayudu 71 off 48 with 6 fours and Faf du Plessis not out 58 off 44 with 6 fours were the knocks that helped CSK win the game against defending champions MI. Chennai Super Kings finally get one over Mumbai after five attempts.
CSK were in deep trouble when openers Shane Watson (4) and Murali Vijay (1) fell an easy prey for lbw to Trent Boult and James Pattinson.
Watson went down in the very first over when CSK score stood at 5 and second wicket fell in the very next over of Vijay at 6.
However, when Rayudu and Plessis were going strong and inching closer towards victory, it was Rahul Chahar who grabbed crucial wicket of Rayudu caught and bowled in 15.6 overs ending the sensational knock from him.
CSK lost its third wicket at 121. Rayudu 71 came in 48 balls with 6 fours and 3 sixes.
After Rayudu’s exit all-rounder Jadeja was lbw by Krunal Pandya the next to go in 17.1 overs. Jadeja scored 10 off 5 with 2 fours.
When CSK needed 16 off 12
In 18.1 overs Curran smashed Bumrah for six needing 10 off 10 balls but in the next ball Curran was bowled by Bumrah caught by Pattinson taking the match to exciting level.
And then in the next ball du Plessis hitting Bumrah for boundary and then taking a single as CSK needing 5 runs off 8 balls.
In the meantime du Plessis also completed his half century knock in 18.4 overs taking a single run.
With du Plessis and Dhoni at the crease CSK needed 5 runs in last over and then du Plessis hitting Trent Boult for four in the very first ball of the last over. CSK still one run short of victory, but then du Plessis hits four in 19.2 overs taking his team towards victory by 5 wickets.
Meanwhile for MI Saurabh Tiwary 42 off 31 and opener Quinton de Kock 33 off 20 went in vain.
Others who chipped in for MI were skipper Rohit 12, Suryakumar Yadav 17, Hardik Pandya 14, Pollard 18 and Pattinson 11.
For CSK wicket-takers were Ngidi 3/38, two wickets each for Chahar and Jadeja and one each for Chawla and Curran. (UNI)
