During the 56th match of the 11th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) at Pune, Chennai Super Kings beat Kings XI Punjab by 5 wickets to register their ninth win of the season.
After MS Dhoni won the toss and put the visitors in to bat, Kings XI Punjab struggled in the initial phase of the innings. Karun Nair’s 10th IPL half-century saw Kings XI score 153-10 in 19.4 overs. Lungi Ngidi’s career-best T20 bowling figures dominated Kings XI’s batting line-up to the fullest.
In the second innings, Chennai Super Kings were seen making some unusual batting decisions, sending in Harbhajan Singh and Deepak Chahar at No. 5 and No. 6 respectively. However, with Suresh Raina scoring an unbeaten half-century at the other end, Chennai ended up scoring 159-5 in 19.1 overs.
Now, we will look at the hits and flops players in this match.
Hits
Karun Nair (KXIP) – Coming in to bat at No. 6 in the 12th over with his team reeling at 76-4, Karun Nair scored his 10th IPL half-century to aid his team in posting a handsome total on the board. He ended up scoring 54 (26) with the help of three fours and five sixes.
Lungi Ngigi (CSK) – Opening the bowling alongside Deepak Chahar, Lungi Ngidi put on record a supreme spell which saw him registering his best IPL figures, 4-1-10-4. On a quick Pune wicket, the Super Kings’ bowlers made the life of the opposition batsmen difficult. The swinging ball had made run-scoring a daunting task for the batsmen. The home team’s bowlers were led by Ngidi, who swung the ball at will in the powerplay.
Suresh Raina (CSK) – Coming in to bat at No. 3 in the second over, Suresh Raina scored his 35th IPL half-century to steer his team to victory in their last league match. In which was not an archetype Raina innings, he struggled to get going in the initial phase of his innings. That said, he continued to rotate the strike to inch close to the target. He ended up scoring 61* (48) with the help of four fours and two sixes.
Flops
Chris Gayle (KXIP) – Opening the batting with Lokesh Rahul, Chris Gayle was expected to contribute significantly in the all-important match for his team. However, he ended up scoring 0 (2), letting down a plethora of Kings XI supporters.
Aaron Finch (KXIP) – Coming in to bat at No.3 in the second over, Aaron Finch struggled against the swing and pace which the Super Kings’ bowlers were generating. He ended up scoring 4 (6) with the help of one four.
Faf du Plessis (CSK) – Brought into the playing eleven in place of Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis failed to make his chance count. Opening the batting with Ambati Rayudu, he ended up scoring 14 (15) with the help of three fours.
