CSK storm into IPL 2018 final as du Plessis stunner beats SRH in qualifier

Faf du Plessis scored well composed 67 and took Chennai Super Kings beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by two wickets. CSK reach finals while SRH will now play Qualifier 2

Chasing 140 in the Qualifier 1 of the VIVO Indian Premier League (IPL 2018), Chennai Super Kings won the match by 2 wickets and sealed their berth in the finals, thanks to the wonderful batting by Faf du Plessis and a cameo by Shardul Thakur. CSK will now play in the finals on May 27. SRH will face the winner of the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals. Kaul came to bowl the 17th over and just gave 4 runs. CSK needed 43 from 18. Brathwaite came to bowl the 18th over and Faf hit him for a four and six. He completed his 50 as well. Harbhajan was run out on the bowler's end for 2 from 9 runs. Shardul Thakur was the new man in. Faf hit Brathwaite for 20 runs and took the equation to 23 from 12 balls. Kaul came to bowl the 19th over and Thakur edged one for four and then one more. 6 were needed from 6 when Bhuvneshwar came to bowl the final over. First ball six to Bhuvneshwar and CSK won by 2 wickets.

Earlier, were off to a bad start as Shane Watson was caught clueless by an outswinger by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and was out for a duck. Suresh Raina was the new man on the crease and scored one run off the very first ball. Sandeep Sharma came to bowl the second over and Raina hit him for three consecutive fours. He leaked 13 runs in the over. Kumar came to bowl the third over. He kept it tight for the du Plessis and Raina. Rashid continued and just gave two runs in the 10th over. Shakib Al Hasan came to bowl and gave just six runs from the over. Rashid came to bowl his third over and scalped Bravo, who was caught at slip by Dhawan. He went for 7. Ravindra Jadeja came to the crease. After 12 overs, CSK were at 61-5. Carlos Brathwaite was introduced in the attack. Runs did not come easily against his bowling as just three runs came from it. Rashid Khan came to the attack and scalped Mahendra Singh Dhoni. He misread the ball and his stumps were rattled. Dhoni scored 9 runs from 18 balls. Dwayne Bravo came to the crease. After 8 overs CSK were at 40 for the loss of 4 wickets. Carlos came to the attack, and du Plessis was hit for a six. CSK were at 48-4 in 9 overs.

Chennai Super Kings innings analysis after 20 overs

Shane Watson and Faf Du Plessis opened the innings for CSK while Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled the first over. Kumar was off to a good start and was swinging the ball both ways. SRH needed early wickets to give themselves a chance to win the match. Four dot balls and Kumar had set the stage for what came on the 5th delivery. Another quick out-swinger and Watson got an edge on it and the wicket-keeper did no mistakes. CSK had lost their first wicket and Suresh Raina came in on number 3. Sandeep Sharma started the second over with a loose delivery outside-off and Raina smacked him away for a four. But Raina didn't just stop at that and followed it with consecutive boundaries and put Sharma under pressure. Sharma went for 13 runs in his over, including 3 fours and a single. Kumar continued with his second over. Both the batsmen played it safe and just 6 runs came off this over. CSK were 20/1 after 3 overs.

Siddarth Kaul was introduced into the attack and took an important wicket dismissing Raina who was looking good. Raina went across, leaving his leg stump exposed and Siddarth Kaul hit the spot just right. The man in form Ambati Rayudu was the next man in but didn't spend too much time on the crease as Kaul clean bowled him. Rayudu departed for a duck paving way M S Dhoni to come into bat next. Kaul finished a successful over conceding just 4 runs and taking 2 crucial wickets. The momentum had shifted a little bit and Williamson looked to continue the attack with Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the 5th over. Dhoni played 5 dot balls and Kumar gave just 1 run in his over. Kaul continued from the other end. Dhoni was looking to slow down the game after the fall of quick wickets. It took him 9 balls to go off the mark but followed it with a boundary towards deep fine leg region. The game had become even as CSK stood at 33/3 after 6 overs....Read More

IPL 2018: Ambati Rayudu's maiden century help CSK beat SRH by 8 wickets

Chennai Super Kings beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 8 wickets to gain two points. Ambati Rayudu scored his maiden IPL century

In the 46th match of the VIVO Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018, Chennai Super Kings won the match against Sunrisers Hyderabad and remained in the second spot in the VIVO IPL points table. Rayudu continued his top form and smashed a brilliant century that enabled the team to reach the target of 180 runs. The usual formidable bowling attack from Hyderabad looked pale today and much of that goes to the wicket condition. Despite the win, there was no change in the position of the teams on the VIVO IPL points table.

Chennai Super Kings had won the toss and elected to field first against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Chennai bowlers kept trying but the partnership between Dhawan and Williamson kept going strong. Dhawan also made his fifty. Jadeja, Watson and Bravo were on the attack yet, a wicket looked far-flung dream for Chennai. Dhawan fell and Williamson followed in the next ball but only after making his fifty. SRH made 179/4 after their 20 overs.

In Hyderabad’s reply, Ambati Rayudu and Shane Watson opened the batting for Chennai. The two had a firm start and they did not allow any dismissal while Hyderabad bowlers were longing for a wicket. The duo kept pushing the ball for a boundary and continuous hitting enabled the team to peak in early in the game where the target was big and against a strong team.

Chennai Super Kings innings analysis after end of innings

Amabati Rayudu and Shane Watson opened the innings for CSK while Sandeep Sharma bowled the first over. He was not producing as much swing as the CSK bowlers did in their initial overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar came in for the second over and Watson clear the fence with a pull shot. Sandeep Sharma continued. Bowled a slow knuckle ball which Watson read perfectly to hit it past the boundary line. Another short-pitched delivery and the end result was the same. CSK started well and stood at 28/0 after 3 overs.

CSK were soring at a decent 9 runs per over 4 overs and Rashid Khan was brought into the attack and Shakib after him to get a breakthrough for SRH. But CSK nothing seemed to stop CSK and they kept scoring runs quickly. CSK made good use of the powerplay and stood at 53/0 after 6 overs.

Sidharth Kaul was introduced into the attack and Rayudu welcomed him with a four and a six. It was clear that CSK had kept the possibility of rain affecting the play in mind and were maintaining a steady run rate between 9 and 10 to remain in a solid position if DLS came into play. The strong bowling line-up of SRH was not able to break the partnership and CSK were cruising towards the target. Rashid returned and bowled tight over in spite of getting hit for a four. CSK were sitting comfortably at 83/0 after 9 overs.

Both the batsmen were playing intelligent cricket as they did not not blindly slogged every other ball. Boundaries were coming in at regular intervals and singles and doubles kept the scoreboard ticking. Pressure was on SRH bowlers to find a wicket while Rayudu and Watson were hitting the ball all across the park. The bowling attack was not able to contain the run flow as the scoring rate touched 9.5 while the asking rate was 8.25. CSK were 114/0 after 12 overs with both the batsmen reaching their fifty.

Williamson brought back his best bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar, literally trying everything to get a wicket. But, even he wasn't spared either. Runs were coming in from everywhere and Kumar conceded 14 runs. Shakib came in to bowl the 14th over and was straight away under pressure, all thanks to Rayudu's huge six over long-on. But, SRH finally saw a ray of hope when Watson got run-out. Suresh Raina came in at number 3. Batsmen were kept silent for the rest of the over. Sandeep Sharma came in for his last over, and Raina had to depart on the very first ball. M S Dhoni was the new man in. No more quick runs for CSK. They 37 runs in 30 balls.

Shakib returned to bowl his last of the match. Created a chance for Manish Pandey who dropped a simple catch at long-on, M S Dhoni survived. Rayudu smacked the next two balls for a six and a four. Rashid Khan was back into the attack. Dhoni was just hanging on to his wicket while Rayudu was firing for CSK. 19 runs were needed in the last three overs. Kaul bowled the 18th over. Kaul bowled quick deliveries and the Batsmen just kept rotating the strike. Kaul's every alternate delivery was a full-toss and he was punished for a similar one when Dhoni hit him for a flat six in the on-side region towards the end of the over. CSK needed 8 runs at the start of the 19th over. Bhuvneshwar came in to bowl. Rayudu mis-hit a ball that landed in the no-man's land. Dhoni wacked the next ball for a boundary and took a soft single to allow Rayudu to complete his century, which he did quite easily. CSK went past the finishing line in the same over and sealed the match with 6 balls to go. A much-needed victory for CSK after consecutive losses. This win increased their chances to end the league phase of the tournament at the to 2 spots to give themselves a better chance in the playoffs.

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