Kolkata Knight Riders scored 137/9 in 20 overs, where as Chennai Super Kings scored 141/3 in 17.4 overs.
So, finally Chennai Super Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 7 wickets.
Chennai Super Kings halted Kolkata Knight Riders’ early-season winning streak on a classic Chepauk surface.
After enduring two losses on the road, CSK returned home to a welcoming pitch that favored spin bowling, allowing Ravindra Jadeja to strangle the opposition with figures of 3 for 18 in 4 overs.
On a track where batting was tough, Mustafizur Rahman regained the purple cap, while Tushar Deshpande also made a significant impact.
Ruturaj Gaikwad rediscovered his form, displaying fluent strokeplay that had been missing in the initial matches.
KKR typically take flight early in their innings, and this match was no exception.
Despite Tushar Deshpande dismissing Phil Salt caught at point on the very first ball, Kolkata Knight Riders, known for their aggressive PowerPlay approach, saw Sunil Narine and Angkrish Raghuvanshi launching an assault with their attacking strokes.
Although the opening over yielded just one run and Mustafizur Rahman’s second over conceded only six, Narine targeted Deshpande in the third over, accumulating 19 runs.
Shardul Thakur, making his return for CSK, began with a loose delivery in the fourth over, which Raghuvanshi dispatched for a boundary, adding 11 runs to the scoreboard.
Despite Mustafizur’s economical bowling to Narine in the sixth over, allowing only six runs, KKR managed to amass 56/1, marking the most expensive PowerPlay conceded by CSK at home this season.
Chepauk once again proved to be a paradise for spinners as Chennai Super Kings showcased their prowess in this aspect.
In the initial two home games of the season, CSK failed to claim any wickets through spin.
However, Ravindra Jadeja turned the tide in his first two overs against Kolkata Knight Riders, disrupting their momentum.
Raghuvanshi attempted to take him on immediately with a reverse sweep but fell victim to being trapped leg before.
Jadeja further capitalized by dismissing Narine with a well-directed delivery outside off-stump, resulting in a mistimed shot caught by Theekshana at long off.
In a standout performance, Ruturaj Gaikwad even posed a threat to Jadeja’s dominance.
The left-arm spinner picked up another crucial wicket, that of Venkatesh Iyer, with a deceptively harmless half-tracker.
Jadeja concluded his spell with impressive figures of 3 for 18, which included 11 dot balls.
CSK tightened their grip on the game during the middle overs with a spin-centric strategy, stifling KKR’s batting lineup.
Rachin Ravindra’s economical over added to KKR’s woes, with Shreyas Iyer’s boundary in the 11th over being a rare instance, coming after a drought of 34 deliveries without one.
Consequently, KKR lost their way post PowerPlay, managing only 53/4 in the subsequent 10 overs.
CSK quell Russell’s onslaught in the final overs.
Mustafizur dominated the 18th over, registering four dot balls and conceding only one boundary.
Remarkably, one of those dot balls came from a free hit delivery.
Deshpande altered his angle, mirroring Mustafizur’s tactic by bowling round the stumps and bolstering the off-side field.
Despite this, Russell managed to find a gap in the field and struck a boundary off the first ball.
However, Deshpande’s strategy paid off as Russell’s attempt to clear the long-on boundary ended in the hands of Daryl Mitchell, securing Deshpande’s third wicket of the match.
Mustafizur followed up with a stellar final over, claiming two wickets and limiting KKR to 137 for 9.
Ruturaj Gaikwad rediscovers his timing.
The new CSK skipper shrugged off his lackluster start to the season and regained his timing during the PowerPlay.
He elegantly executed drives and cuts through covers and point, dispatching three fours off Anukul Roy, followed by a stylish square drive off Vaibhav Arora, who had dismissed Rachin Ravindra in his preceding over.
Gaikwad’s series of boundaries propelled CSK to 52/1 in just 6 overs.
How did the remainder of the chase unfold?
It proceeded quite smoothly.
Daryl Mitchell made an impact by removing Sunil Narine in his initial over, while Varun Chakravarthy maintained control with three economical overs, conceding just 13 runs.
Andre Russell also began impressively on the challenging pitch, only for Ruturaj to counter with a swivel-pull for a boundary in his opening over.
Despite Narine’s bounce-back after an expensive first over, where he conceded 14 runs, he tightened his bowling in the subsequent two overs and managed to dismiss Mitchell.
Gaikwad continued to showcase his elegant drives, achieving his highest score at the venue with an unbeaten 67 off 58 deliveries.
Meanwhile, Shivam Dube made an immediate impact, hitting Mitchell Starc for a boundary and then smashing Varun Chakravarthy for two consecutive sixes, hastening CSK’s victory.
Dube’s dismissal in the 17th over allowed the Chepauk crowd their first glimpse of MS Dhoni batting at CSK’s home ground.
Dhoni entered the fray with just 3 runs needed and calmly saw the team through alongside his successor in the 18th over.
What’s on the horizon?
CSK will travel to Mumbai to face Hardik Pandya’s team on Sunday (April 14).
Meanwhile, KKR will return home to host LSG in the day game also on the same date (April 14).
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