- RCB 139-8 (20 overs); CSK 140-7 (19.5)
- Super Kings win by three wickets
Right that’s it from me. It was rarely as enthralling as that close scoreline suggests, to be honest. It always felt as though RCB’s score was around 10 below par and that MS Dhoni had it under control all along. Credit has to go to the CSK bowlers, Ashish Nehra with 3-28 especially, and Mike Hussey for his 56 from 46 balls.
Chennai go through to Sunday’s final, where they will play Mumbai Indians. Again. Do join me for that one. Cheers for reading. Bye!
19.5 overs: CSK 140-7 (Ashwin 1, Jadeja 0) One needed from the last two. It’s full on middle and Ashwin just leans into it and knocks it square on the leg side for the winning run!
19.4 overs: CSK 139-7 (Jadeja 0) one to win Dhoni on strike. It’s full, on off, Dhoni swings and feathers it through to Karthik!
19.3 overs: CSK 139-6 (Dhoni 26, Jadeja 0) one to win Full toss, creamed out to deep extra cover for two; Kohli with some excellent fielding in the deep to prevent the boundary. Scores level.
19.2 overs: CSK 137-6 (Dhoni 24, Jadeja 0) three to win Short, Dhoni gets a bottom edge to it and there’s no run to midwicket.
19.1 overs: CSK 137-6 (Dhoni 24, Jadeja 0) three to win So we go to a final over, Jadeja is the new man. Harshal Patel, with five runs to defend, is the bowler. Slapped down the ground to long off; it should only be one, but Kohli’s return throw is a touch lax and they get back for two.
19 overs: CSK 135-6 (Dhoni 22) five to win Bravo strides out. And strolls back off again as Starc, from round the wicket, detonates the stumps with a mighty fine yorker!
18.5 overs: CSK 135-5 (Dhoni 22) five to win Yorker dug out to cover. They go for the single but Negi is miles short as Sarfaraz hits directly.
18.4 overs: CSK 135-4 (Dhoni 22, Negi 12) five to win Bump ball back at the bowler, but he can only get a palm to it and they get two.
18.3 overs: CSK 133-4 (Dhoni 20, Negi 12) seven to win Inswinger flicked to mid on for one.
18.2 overs: CSK 132-4 (Dhoni 20, Negi 11) eight to win The batsmen get caught in two minds, the throw from mid off should bring the run out, but it misses and they get an overthrow.
18.1 overs: CSK 131-4 (Dhoni 19, Negi 11) nine to win Starc to bowl the penultimate over. You would imagine that he needs to get Dhoni here. He doesn’t with this ball, the India captain dancing down the track and mashing a length ball outside off back to long off for four.
18th over: CSK 127-4 (Dhoni 15, Negi 11) target 140 27 needed from 18 balls. Dhoni reduces that target by one, then Negi reduces it by six with an absolute monster of a slog, high but also a good way over mid on. Harshal Patel is the bowler, by the way. Negi tries again a couple of balls later, but just drags it along the floor to mid on for one. Ooh Dhoni then gets lucky, inside edging on to his pads and they dash through for one more – that could so easily have gone into the stumps. Negi smears the final ball out to extra cover, where Starc comes around to keep them to a couple. 13 needed from 12 balls. Let’s go ball-by ball, yeah?
17th over: CSK 113-4 (Dhoni 13, Negi 0) target 140 Kohli decides to hold Starc back until the death, as you’d expect, but it might be too late now. No sooner have I typed that than Hussey goes, but as long as Dhoni’s there then CSK should still do this. A slower ball goes beneath the low bottom edge of MS’s bat and nutmegs Karthik, allowing the batsmen three byes.
A great innings comes to an end. Wiese drops short, Hussey tries to pull but top edges it and the ball loops to midwicket.
16th over: CSK 106-3 (Dhoni 10, Hussey 55) target 140 Chahal again. Hussey sashays down the pitch to his first ball, backs away to leg and smacks it back down the ground for six. He tries again next ball, but Chahal sees him coming and pushes it a bit wider, so Hussey can only bunt to mid off for one. Another single to Dhoni, then Hussey charges again but can only screw it off the inside edge to Sarfaraz at mid on. No run for that, but six from the next as Hussey slog sweeps over mid on for six!
15th over: CSK 91-3 (Dhoni 9, Hussey 41) target 140 Speaking of Starc (look, read the last entry), here he is again. It’s probably best for CSK to just keep things ticking over here and see off Starc, before targeting the other seamers. Indeed that’s what they do here: a single from each of the over’s six balls.
14th over: CSK 85-3 (Dhoni 6, Hussey 38) target 140 Back comes Chahal. His overs and Starc’s will be crucial, you imagine. Dhoni isn’t even bothering with a cap against the spinner; that might be because of the heatwave they’re apparently going through out there. Just one from the first four balls, then Hussey gets a leading edge in the air, but too far to the bowler’s right for it to be a c&b chance. One run from that, one run to Dhoni down to long on and the required rate is now above nine. CSK are still favourites in my book.
#CSK would be favourites if their lower-order had been in form this season; it hasn't been. This match is evenly poised. #IPL#CSKvRCB#RCB
13th over: CSK 82-3 (Dhoni 4, Hussey 37) target 140 Kohli turns back to Aravind. They probably need a couple more wickets in the next three overs or so to win this, do RCB. I mean, if ever there was a pair in the post-Bevan era you wanted to see you home, it’s these two. Hussey picks up a pair of twos, then Aravind drops short and on leg stump, and Hussey whips the pull round the corner for four more. Singles from each of the last two balls make 10 from the over.
12th over: CSK 72-3 (Dhoni 3, Hussey 28) target 140 Wiese has been the least effective of the RCB bowlers so far today – 18 from his two overs so far. This is a risky move from Kohli, holding back his strike bowlers with a new batsman at the crease. Wiese goes too full to Hussey and rightly gets driven through extra cover for four. Eight off the over, which is around about up there with the required rate. I think this one’s going down to the wire, folks.
11th over: CSK 64-3 (Dhoni 1, Hussey 22) target 140 This is probably a crucial innings for Dhoni; if he goes cheaply then RCB might just do this. Harshal Patel is back into the attack, having conceded just five from his first over. Hussey gets a single to give Dhoni the strike and he gets off the mark from the fourth ball of his innings, a dab down to third man for it. Two from the over. Oh and it looks like Hussey has had his score corrected somehow. Er, not sure what happened there.
10th over: CSK 62-3 (Dhoni 0, Hussey 23) target 140 After adverts, Hussey goes after Chahal, slogging him up in the air over mid off. It plugs though and Starc jogs round, dives and flaps it back in to keep them for three. Faf is bowled the very next ball, exposing his stumps and losing them. Raina only lasts two, which brings the Microsoft man to the crease.
Is this on? Surely it’s not on. Raina goes big second ball, trying to hit down the ground and into the stands, but just picks out the man on the straight boundary.
Once again, du Plessis goes for the premeditated used-to-be-called-a-Dilscoop. This time though he misses it, it’s an arm ball and over goes leg stump.
9th over: CSK 58-1 (du Plessis 17, Hussey 21) target 140 Another half chance as de Villiers swoops in from cover, picks up, dives and throws off target with Hussey short. Du Plessis responds with what was once called the Dilscoop, a premeditated little shovel over his shoulder for four. And the same amount comes from the final ball, bunted down the ground.
8th over: CSK 47-1 (du Plessis 12, Hussey 15) target 140 Time for some spin, with Chahal being brought in. More poor fielding as du Plessis hesitates in calling for a run and Hussey is a goner if de Villiers – of all people – doesn’t throw the ball a couple of feet behind the stumps. He does that, though. Two more to deep extra cover when, yep, there’s a fumble.
7th over: CSK 41-1 (du Plessis 8, Hussey 13) target 140 Wiese into the attack now and he begins with a wide, drifted listlessly outside of the tramlines on the off side. then a couple of balls later, perhaps a drop? I can’t see any edge, but, after it clatters out of Karthik’s gloves – unacceptable, really, at Wiese’s pace – and the batsmen jog through for one, the umpire gives it as runs. Then a ridiculous wide off what should have been the last delivery, the ball coming off the pad down the leg side.
That was just incredibly out of the blue.
6th over: CSK 34-1 (du Plessis 5, Hussey 11) target 140 Guys, forget about what’s happening on the pitch: we need a montage of slow-motion close-up shots of the inanimate object that is the IPL trophy, backed with some inartistic montage music. And by gum we’ve got one! That’s more like it, TV producer! There is a brief glimpse too, of du Plessis toe ending a slog up in the air and over the bowler’s head, whence Wiese chases it down and reels it back in nicely to save one. It was still better looking than that montage.
5th over: CSK 28-1 (du Plessis 1, Hussey 9) target 140 Time for a new bowler, Harshal Patel. He drops too short, strays too far on to leg stump, and Hussey hooks him round the corner for a one bounce four. Other than that? I dunno, because they’re talking to Andy Bichel. He likes the IPL, in case you were wondering.
4th over: CSK 23-1 (du Plessis 1, Hussey 4) target 140 Du Plessis should be gone first ball! Arvind sends down a ripper that hits the bat slightly higher than Faf expected, takes the edge and flies into Gayle’s chest at slip. They go through for a single, then Hussey is close to going too: mishitting a pull that bounces just in front of Harshal Patel at deep square leg. He should have dived forward there as Hussey did in the first innings to get Mandeep in the same region.
Short from Arvind and Smith swivels and pulls. It’s an aesthetically pleasing body movement from Smith, but he gets it off the bottom end of the bat and Starc poaches him at deep square leg.
3rd over: CSK 21-0 (Smith 17, Hussey 3) target 140 Starc again; RCB need wickets. He gives up a bit of width to Smith, who mishits a wild slog, but the ball goes over extra cover and bobbles limply to the fence. After a pair of singles, it looks as though Starc is clutching at his back a bit. Oh this won’t help, short and wide outside off stump, it swings away and takes the toe end of the bat, down and between keeper and slip for four to third man. Smith pushes down the ground for a single. 21 from the first three overs, which is perfectly on the required run rate.
2nd over: CSK 10-0 (Smith 7, Hussey 2) target 140 It’s Arvind from the other end – another left armer, albeit a much slower one than Starc. Smith’s drive to cover is only half stopped, so they get a single for that. Hussey drops and runs, probably only getting through because AB misses his attempt at a one-handed pick up. Another dot, then a very strange punch, with the hands miles from the body, on the back foot and it’s a mishit, but it’s back past the bowler fro four. One more to mid off completes the over.
1st over: CSK 3-0 (Smith 1, Hussey 1) target 140 Well. Dwayne Smith has a massive, needless mow at his first ball and gets cut in half by Starc. He’s underway next ball though, tucking it to midwicket for a single. Hussey, he of the crap nickname (honestly, they don’t call me Mr OBO) emulates his opening partner, playing and missing at his first ball. Hussey gets a single while, er, I check my inbox, then Smith takes a very, very sharp leg bye from the last.
Here come the players. Starc, you won’t be surprised to hear, has been chucked the ball.
Unless Starc can do something special, this shouldn’t be too hard a run chase for CSK. I’m going with a six-wicket win, the total reached after 15.4 overs.
20th over: RCB 139-8 (Aravind 0, Starc 1) Bravo with the final over. Harshal clumps the first ball to mid on for a single, bringing the 17-year-old Sarfaraz on strike. He goes back in his crease and slaps over extra cover for four. A single from a mistimed reverse sweep, then Harshal goes. Starc takes one first ball to mid off, giving Sarfaraz the strike once again. Not that he can do anything with it, but his 31 from 21 balls has at least prevented RCB’s total from being humiliating. Aravind swings and misses at the final ball.
Slower ball, outside off and he cuts meekly to point.
Harshal thinks about taking a bye off a wide, walks out of his ground and Dhoni throws down the stumps.
19th over: RCB 131-6 (Sarfaraz 26, H Patel 1) Bravo looked mighty annoyed with du Plessis’s drop in the last over, and it may have rankled a little that he was the man to take the catch to pick up a wicket that should have been his. There’s a single either side of the wicket, then Sarfaraz plays a lovely, wristy shot with the bottom hand, lifting it on the up, over midwicket for a one bounce four. The final ball brings half a run out chance as the batsmen consider a single to cover, then belated decide against it, but Jadeja’s throw was off target and Harshal was back anyway. So not really a chance at all, I guess.
Mohit sends it down on a length, Wiese goes for the slog but only succeeds in hitting it miles into the Ranchi sky. Down it comes and Bravo shows Faf how you do it.
18th over: RCB 124-5 (Sarfaraz 20, Wiese 12) Bravo again. These two can’t time him at all, largely thanks to the bowler’s consistent fifth stump line and variations of pace. Proving and disproving this point in one fell swoop, Bravo sends down a slower ball on a length, on middle and off and Wiese launches him straight back into the stands. Two balls later he gets a top edge and Faf du Plessis is under it at short fine leg... but he spills a very simple high catch. Straight into the hands and out again.
17th over: RCB 113-5 (Sarfaraz 18, Wiese 3) Nehra comes back for his final over and Karthik smashes a half volley back over his head for four more. Someone’s going to get badly hurt by one of these shots someday. Karthik goes though, and that’s another perfectly timed wicket, breaking a promising looking partnership. Wiese the new batsman. After the four, it’s just three singles, a two and a wide from the over. Nehra finishes with 3-28, which is rather excellent.
The most IPL wicket imaginable. A waist-high full toss, slapped up in the air and caught at long on.
16th over: RCB 103-4 (Sarfaraz 16, Karthik 24) More left arm spin, from Jadeja. Karthik takes one, then Sarfaraz mistimes a drive, awkwardly, with one hand off the bat, uppish and just about beating the fielder to the boundary over cover. He nails his next shot though, absolutely murdering it back over the bowler’s head for four. A couple more runs bring up the 100, then another pair make it 13 from a productive over.
If #RCB bowl well a target of around 140 could challenge #CSK on this pitch, but they'll rue having just the one spinner. #IPL#CSKvRCB
15th over: RCB 90-4 (Sarfaraz 4, Karthik 23) With Gayle gone, Dhoni dares to introduce his left arm spinner Negi. With Gayle gone, the quick twos are on too now. Sarfaraz gets exactly that, out to midwicket, first ball, but other than that there’s naught but a single apiece on offer.
14th over: RCB 86-4 (Sarfaraz 1, Karthik 22) Finally! Gayle effortlessly lifts Raina’s first ball of the over deep into the stands beyond the midwicket boundary. In the slot again next ball and it’s over long on for six more. Dhoni adjusts his field, putting long on and wide midwicket on the rope, but it’s a double bluff as Raina fires it flat and wide across Gayle. He gets the wicket with a bit of filth next ball, but Karthik turns the very next ball deftly round the corner for four more to long leg.
A short, filthy ball and Gayle top edges it straight up. Raina turns around and holds the catch, cool as eff.
13th over: RCB 67-3 (Gayle 29, Karthik 18) Dwayne Bravo is into the attack. He’s arguably been the best death bowler in this year’s competition; his 23 wickets have him sat pretty atop the wicket-takers’ list. Two dots, then Gayle pushes down the ground for a single. He hasn’t hit a boundary since the last ball of the seventh over and is striking at just 72.5; his career strike rate is 147. A wide, then Karthik gets a leading edge off a slower ball back to the bowler. Another slower ball and Karthik can’t pick him at all, this time missing outside off. Finally a bit of width, but the batsman can’t get it past the man at backward point. This is brilliant, brilliant bowling.
12th over: RCB 64-3 (Gayle 27, Karthik 18) Raina again and an actual boundary! Full and Karthik frees his arms, clubbing over long on and the ball bouncing just inside the rope for four. Raina pushes the next one a touch wider and Karthik slashes it, uppish, but just wide of the diving cover fielder and away for four more. Three from the next two balls and Gayle pushes down the ground for a single from the final ball. That’s more like it from RCB.
11th over: RCB 52-3 (Gayle 26, Karthik 7) On Skype, Kumar Sangakkara (yep) reckons that 140+ is a decent score from here but RCB don’t have enough spinners to defend that. Gayle drives out to wide mid off for two who runs! A leg bye belatedly brings up the team 50, then Karthik clubs awkwardly down the ground for one more. A final single makes six from yet another tight over of wicket-to-wicket bowling.
10th over: RCB 46-3 (Gayle 23, Karthik 5) We return from a glorified ad break and, with Ashwin bowled out, we have more spin – from Raina now. Surely Gayle has to go after this? Not yet, just a single nudged to mid on. Karthik cuts for another, then a wide. Gayle stays quite with another nudge to mid on; he’s almost been restricted to that shot and that shot alone tonight. Karthik comes down the track and hits it out to wide long on, but Gayle is so slow between the wickets that they can only get one for that too.
9th over: RCB 41-3 (Gayle 21, Karthik 3) Mohit continues. It’s probably not much of a stretch to say that this is all on Gayle now. He’s not looking himself at all though; seeing off a couple of dots and then punching down the ground for just the one. Karthik punches out to deep mid on for the same, before Gayle scrambles one more from the last ball as the ball deflects off the bowler.
8th over: RCB 38-3 (Gayle 19, Karthik 2) This is brilliant bowling. Ashwin is unchanged and he sends down four dots, one wicket-taking ball and one ball that Karthik knocks away for a couple. He finishes with 1-13 from his four overs.
Mandeep goes now. He sweeps noncommittally – the shot halfway between a dab and proper hit – and top edges low to Hussey at square leg.
7th over: RCB 36-2 (Gayle 19, Mandeep 4) A change of bowling, Mohit Sharma on. A thick outside edge down to third man gets Mandeep one, before Gayle nudges out to square leg for a couple more. The big guy is curiously quiet at the moment – this run rate really could do with a boot up the arse at some point soon. The final ball is on Gayle’s hips and he nudges it around the corner for four. That’ll be annoying for the bowler.
6th over: RCB 29-2 (Gayle 13, Mandeep 3) Bloody hell, six overs of unchanged bowling! That de Villiers one also pitched outside leg, so not a great one for the umpire. Mandeep Singh gets his first runs with a sweep dabbed neatly past leg slip and down to long leg for a couple. Other than that, just two singles from the over.
5th over: RCB 25-2 (Gayle 12, Mandeep 0) Nehra gets a third over and removes Kohli with the first ball of it. De Villiers enters and flicks to the same fielder, along the ground this time, for a single to get underway first ball. There’s a big shout for LBW agains Gayle next ball and it looked good on first viewing. It hit him on the knee roll but he was a long way back. It might have been going a fraction over middle and off. A single gets de Villiers back on strike and he goes to the final ball of the over!
And I’m not sure this is a great decision. It pitched on middle and swung back a long way, clattering into de Villiers’ pad. Up goes the finger, but I’m not certain about the height or whether it might have been going down leg.
This is soft. It’s a back of a length ball, eminently hittable at that pace and on leg stump. Kohli somehow gets tucked up and simply flicks it straight to the man at square leg.
4th over: RCB 23-0 (Gayle 11, Kohli 12) Breaking from this season’s tradition, Ashwin gets a second over at the top of the innings. Again, Ashwin beats Gayle’s outside edge with a lovely spinning delivery that fizzes off the pitch. Just the two singles from an excellent over – Gayle looks content to see Ashwin off and target the other bowlers.
3rd over: RCB 21-0 (Gayle 10, Kohli 11) My apologies, it was Jadeja who got hit in that last over, on the knee, by Gayle. He’s hobbling now. Nehra continues here, bowling an excellent off stump line from over the wicket to the right handed Kohli. Nowt on offer for the batsmen from the first three balls, but then he pulls his length ball a touch too short and Kohli flicks it over mid on for a one bounce four. Nehra responds by going fuller and the batsman gives him the charge, hitting straight for a flat six that takes him past 500 runs for the season.
2nd over: RCB 11-0 (Gayle 10, Kohli 1) Spin from the other end as Dhoni tosses the ball to Ashwin. There’s a little turn for the off spinner as, after Kohli pushes down the ground for a languid single, he gets one to drift past Gayle’s outside edge. Width next, but Gayle misses out on it as his cut hits the cover fielder on the hand and hurts him. A mistimed sweep takes the top edge and drops just wide of Nehra at short fine leg, then spins on its merry way to the boundary.
1st over: RCB 6-0 (Gayle 6, Kohli 0) Nehra to Gayle it is. He begins with a fairly wide on outside off that keeps very, very low. That pitch looks rather sluggish to me. The second ball is full, outside off and – ha! – gets the leading edge miles over extra cover for six. “The beauty of [the 3lb 8oz bat] is that mishits go for six still,” says Scott Styris. How on earth can that be a good thing?! Nehra adjusts his line, offering less width and it looks like he’s sending down off breaks here. Gayle leaves a couple alone, then gets an inside edge hard into his ankle. That’s hurt him. Gayle defends the final ball off the back foot and that’s a decent enough over for the bowling side, in the end.
We’re about to begin. Gayle will presumably take first strike against Nehra.
There’s a fair bit of dew around, which will suit the likes of Starc and Nehra, and hence MS Dhoni’s decision to field first. The good news is that there’s no rain forecast for today.
Chennai Super Kings: DR Smith, MEK Hussey, F du Plessis, SK Raina, MS Dhoni*†, DJ Bravo, RA Jadeja, P Negi, R Ashwin, MM Sharma,A Nehra
CSK win it and will have a bowl first.
Afternoon folks. Yes, I know there’s real cricket going on and I know that’s probably of more interest to you. But we are living in a material world and I am a material girl*. So let’s do this. There’s every chance that it’ll actually be more fun than the Test match, given that monster scores in the second, third and fourth innings of that one look a distinct possibility. Plus, you don’t get this in the IPL:
Only at Lord's: well turned out corporate type sat on grass at Nursery End wearing massive "I'm voting UKIP" badge.
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