‘Sir’ Ravindra Jadeja’s proved it on the pitch with his all-round brilliance that propelled the Chennai Super Kings outfit to a 7-run win over Rajasthan Royals in an IPL encounter on Tuesday.
Chennai need more innings like these if they are to win their 3rd IPL title as ‘Sir’ Ravindra Jadeja’s proved it on the pitch with his all-round brilliance that propelled the Chennai Super Kings outfit to a 7-run win over Rajasthan Royals in an IPL encounter on Tuesday.
The all-rounded southpaw scored a 33-ball 36 that matched with bowling figures of 4-33 as CSK restricted the Royals to a modest 133. In the 1st innings, Rajasthan’s sync bowling helped restrict the CSK to a modest total of 140. Opener Dwayne Smith (50) tore into the Rajasthan bowling attack with an array of strokes but the other Super Kings batsmen failed to deliver the same innings.
Brendon McCullum (6), Suresh Raina (4), Faf du Plessis (7) and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (5) did not hurt the scorers as CSK’s ‘stars’ were sent packing early. But in walked Ravindra Jadeja who scored an unbeaten 36 off 33 balls lower down the order to hand the momentum back into CSK’s dugout. CSK’s biggest partnership was between Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin (39) which helped reach the 140 target.
Chennai have now gained momentum in this IPL with 2 wins a defeat. MS Dhoni knows that his IPL side lacks the bowling depth that requires winning in almost all games. Old warhorse Ashish Nehra is isn’t the same bowler anymore and Mohit Sharma is just new to the scene of international cricket. With more games to follow, CSK must strategise appropriately and use the overseas players when required.
As for the Rajasthan Royals, the batting still is their weakest point in the tourney so far. The likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Sanju Samson and the rest are failing to fire on all cylinders. Shane Watson must be burdened with the captaincy of the Royals and no wonder that’s affecting his batting too.
Final Scores:
Chennai Super Kings 140 for 6 (Dwayne Smith 50, Jadeja 36*, Bhatia 2-13) beat Rajasthan Royals 133 (Jadeja 4-33) by seven runs.
