By Neil Manthorp.
Desperate batting from MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja just failed to win the game for Chennai Super Kings as they lost their IPL match against the Rajasthan Royals by three-runs at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Wednesday.
Disciplined bowling and clever tactics saw CSK restrict the Royals to a below-par total of 175-8 and CSK looked on course in their run-chase at 78-1 until they crashed to 113-6. But 41-year-old Dhoni whipped Sandeep Sharma for two legside sixes in the final over with 20 needed and Jadeja smashed 25 from 15 balls to give them a chance.
With just six required from the final two balls, however, Sharma delivered two perfect wide yorkers and the Royals had won.
Earlier a second wicket stand of 77 between Jos Buttler and Devdutt Padikkal put the Royals on course for something more substantial but Jadeja turned the tide of the innings with two wickets in the ninth over reducing the Royals from 88-1 to 88-3, Padikkal (38) top edging a slog sweep to deep square leg and captain Sanju Samson (0) playing back to a full delivery which spun past the edge to hit off-stump.
The Royals’ obsession with using Ravichandran Ashwin as a pinch-hitter continued and he appeared at No 5 only to labour to 10 off 14 balls just when acceleration was required. The veteran offspinner did manage to hit a brace of sixes before holing out to Sisanda Magala at long off to depart for 30 from 22 balls.
CSK’s tactic against the ever dangerous Buttler was to starve him of the strike and it worked brilliantly as the England T20 captain faced only 36 balls before being dismissed in the 17th over.
Having struck countryman Moeen Ali for two sixes in his first over, the eighth of the innings, Moeen had his revenge in the 17th by bowling Buttler for 52 (1×4, 3×6).
Magala bowled two overs at a cost of just 17 but left the field with what appeared to be an injury and did not reappear but left-arm spinner Jadeja was the pick of the attack with 2-21 from his four overs.
Both teams had won two of their first three games but victory puts the Royals in a share of the log league with the Lucknow Super Giants on six points with three wins from four games.
It was Dhoni’s 200th game as captain of CSK.
CHENNAI SUPER KINGS: Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ajinkya Rahane, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (captain and wkt), Sisanda Magala, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Akash Singh
RAJASTHAN ROYALS: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (captain and wkt), Devdutt Padikkal, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jason Holder, Kuldeep Sen, Sandeep Sharma, Yuzvendra Chahal.