Inspired by Patidar, RCB deal CSK a big blow

In some style too. RCB’s record at Chepauk is worse; they had lost eight of their last nine matches, their only win coming in 2008. On Friday, RCB won there too continuing their trend of beating former champions at home. There is a long way to go in IPL18 but will this be RCB’s year?

For the second time in as many matches, Josh Hazlewood tasted success in his first over. This time, the big Australian quick did one better, get two. Hazlewood banged the ball in – the only time you can do that in Chennai and hope to not suffer is at the start – and Rahul Tripathi and Ruturaj Gaikwad were back in the shade six balls into CSK’s chase of 197.

Inspired by Patidar, RCB deal CSK a big blow

Bhuvneshwar Kumar then continued the trend of oldies showing there is life in them yet by ruining Deepak Hooda ‘s evening. It was Hooda’s dropped catch off RCB skipper Rajat Patidar that helped the visitors get to 196/7 and win by 50 runs. Never before in IPL have CSK lost by that many at home.

On 17 then, Patidar made 51 (32b; 4×4; 6×3) kept swinging and riding his luck in the 13th over when Tripathi couldn’t get to another catch and one died on Khaleel Ahmed. It meant one wicket less for Ahmad who finished on 4-0-28-1. He could have got Patidar in the over that he got Virat Kohli who had struggled to get going and maybe then, CSK would have had a chance.

Instead, the visitors rode late belligerence from Tim David (22, 8b; 6×3) to post a score that looked unlikely when Matheesha Pathirana gave away two runs in the 19th over. Sam Curran began the last over with two dots before David swung the next three beyond the boundary on the leg-side to add 17 to the score.

Reeling from the early triple blow, CSK never got going leaving the stadium shrouded in silence. That is not what usually happens at the home of the five-time champions. Yash Dayal, who had stopped Angkrish Raguvanshi from making a real impact at Eden, showed how well he has shrugged off being hit for five successive sixes in a final over in 2023 by getting Rachin Ravidra (41; 31b) and Shivam Dube (19) in four balls and five runs in the 13th over. By the time of MS Dhoni’s late pyrotechnics (unbeaten after a 16-ball 30), it was about managing the net run rate.

Inspired by Patidar, RCB deal CSK a big blow

Noor Ahmad and Dhoni were the only positives for CSK and it fit that they were linked. The umpire called for a review but Dhoni was sure. He conveyed as much to Ahmad even as Phil Salt looked sure that he was in the crease. As it turned out, Salt’s foot was raised ever so slightly and by the time he had grounded it, Dhoni had whipped off the bails.

Two matches in, Ahmad has seven wickets, the most in IPL18, but two of them – Surya Kumar Yadav and Salt – had been conjured by the wicket-keeper with hands so fast that he could been a Sphagetti Western hero.

Dhoni is in his fifth decade and does not play any competitive cricket barring IPL. Yet, in successive matches he has shown that age has not withered him. The man who made collecting throws from the deep without follow-through a habit showed on Friday that his anticipation and reflexes have not been blunted by time. CSK had got the first two batters, Salt and Devdutt Padikkal, with good work in the field. Padikkal was taken by Gaikwad diving forward to complete a good catch. Ironic then, that it was the catching that would let them down and evening bled into the night.Moral responsibility to provide clean environment to children: President Murmu