Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings (CSK) tried to take it deep, they did take it there but only to lose the match by 16-run against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Tuesday.
Super Kings were facing Royals last night at Sharjah, a venue which is known for its high scoring matches. Sanju Samson (74 off 32) and Steve Smith (69 off 47) didn’t disappoint us after CSK put them to bat first with 216 runs on board.
We have decided to take the last over of the first innings as the turning point of the match where Royals added 30 runs. Courtesy: four sixes from Jofra Archer and two no-ball from Lungi Ngidi. After getting a flying start, the Royals weren’t finishing on high, with only 20 runs in 18 balls in between 16 to 19 overs losing three wickets. That 30 runs not only boosted their score, it also swung back the momentum in their favor.
So, thats what our Turnaround board thinks the real turnaround in the match was.
Let’s get back to the second innings, as MS Dhoni said in the post-match presentation, the team needed to get a flying start in order to chase down the big total which wasn’t the case with CSK. But we cannot rule any team out of the game with MS Dhoni, Faf du Plessis, and Ravindra Jadeja hanging around. When MS walked in the team was in need of 103 runs off 38 balls.
Mathematically, the Royals were winning it quite comfortably but everyone expects Dhoni, Faf (already played 18 balls), and Jadeja to fire around to give a tough fight. Faf lived up to everyone’s expectation and scored 54 runs from 19 balls afterward. Dhoni’s 09 off 12 (till 19th over) do take CSK close to the target, but it had already ruled them out of the equation in 19 over, needling 38 of six balls. Anything around 20-25 in those 12 balls could give Jadeja a real chance to give a try in the last over.
Super Kings are facing Delhi Capitals on Friday with Royals going head to head against Kings XI Punjab on Sunday.
