Dubai: Ruturaj Gaikwad’s (88 n o, 58b, 9×4, 4×6) fantastic innings backed up by some steady bowling enabled Chennai Super Kings (CSK) win the opening game of the second phase of IPL-2021 against Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Dubai Cricket Stadium here Sunday. Batting first after winning the toss, CSK posted 156 for six in their 20 overs and then restricted the defending champions to 136 for eight to win the game by 20 runs.
If Gaikwad shone with the bat, it was the veteran Dwayne Bravo (3/25) who stifled MI with the ball. He was well-supported by pacer Deepak Chahar (2/19) who bowled an incisive opening spell to put MI on the back-foot. He picked up both the MI openers, Quinton de Kock (17) and Anmolpreet Singh (16) to keep the Kings in the game.
Only Saurabh Tiwary (50, 40b, 5×4) offered some resistance with the bat for MI who were without skipper Rohit Sharma. The rest just failed to conjure up a good knock that would have helped team over the finish line.
Rohit was rested for the game due to a knee niggle he had sustained during the recent England tour. MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene said Rohit was kept out of the game as a precautionary measure. “Rohit had something going in last Test (Oval), so we thought a couple of days of extra precaution,” he said.
Earlier it not been for Gaikwad, it is doubtful whether the Kings would have crossed the three-figure mark. They were rocked early on and reduced to 24 for four including the wicket of skipper MS Dhoni. Adam Milne (2/21) and Trent Boult (2/35) bowled a fantastic opening spell and they were well-supported by Jasprit Bumrah (2/33).
However, after the early losses, it was Gaikwad who held the innings together. He put on 81 runs for the fifth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja (26, 33b, 1×4) to give a semblance of a hope to CSK. After Jadeja’s dismissal, Bravo (23, 8b, 3×6) scored some quick runs, to take CSK past the 150-run mark. It was something which had distinctly looked impossible in the 15th over when the score read 87 for four. In the next five overs, the Kings put on 69 runs with Gaikwad and Bravo putting the opposition bowlers to the sword.
Gaikwad played shots all round the wicket. He used the sweep and cut to good effect to tackle the Mumbai spinners. He took 41 deliveries to reach 50 and his next 38 runs came in just 17 deliveries with a strike rate of over 200. It proved the versatility that he has a batsman.
Brief scores: CSK 156 for 6 (Ruturaj Gaikwad 88 n o, Adam Milne 2/21, Jasprit Bumrah 2/33, Trent Boult 2/35) beat MI 136 for 8 (Saurabh Tiwary 50 n o, Dwayne Bravo 3/25, Deepak Chahar 2/19) by 20 runs.