With this win, Chennai reached the top of the points table and now have 5 wins in their 7 matches. Whereas Kolkata is at 8th position with just 2 wins in 7 matches.
The CSK batsmen hit 18 sixes in total, highlighting the plight of the KKR bowlers in front of the Eden crowd, which was drenched in a sea of yellow. Rahane’s half century devon conway And Shivam Dube bundled out Chennai for 235 for 4 and in reply Kolkata could only manage 186 for 8 in their 20 overs.
Rahane displayed sensational stroke-play, which was complemented by the muscular Dubey (50 off 21 balls) and the relentless Conway (56 off 40 balls) with CSK on par.
With Jason Roy pulling a hamstring while fielding, the chase was impossible and the young pace trio of Akash Singh (1/29 in 4 overs), Mathisha Pathirana (1/27 in 4 overs) and Tushar Deshpande (2/43) Was. 4 overs) Experienced spinners Moeen Ali (1/20 in 1 over), Mahesh Tixhana (2/32 in 4 overs) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/34 in 3 overs) successfully restricted KKR.
as it happened
Roy (61 from 26 balls), who came in at No.5 due to a hamstring niggle, followed up his effort with a 19-ball half-century, but 236 would have been a tall order even with the best of a batting line-up.
The win took CSK to the top of the table with 10 points from seven matches, while KKR are now eighth among 10 teams after suffering their fifth loss at the halfway stage.
To add insult to injury, KKR received no home support as the 67,000-capacity Eden Stand resembled sunflowers in the form of ‘canary yellow’ jerseys filling every corner of the venue.
They came for the ‘Last Dance’ of their beloved Mahendra Singh Dhoni and CSK did not disappoint them either.
But the credit goes to Rahane, who surprises everyone with his positive intent every day. Rahane makes up for what KL Rahul lacks, but perhaps Dhoni’s presence in that dug-out is proving to be the deciding factor.
Rahane 2.0
It was hard to fathom that the same Rahane had scored just 133 runs in seven matches at a strike rate of under 104 for KKR last season.
But Rahane seemed to have got a new lease of life after being led by the charismatic Dhoni as he continued his fiery run for CSK with his second half-century of the season.
Long touted as a Test batsman, the 34-year-old produced some never-seen-before scoop shots, ruthless pulls along with his signature drives, en route to his second half-century of the season.
Overall, he hit six fours and five sixes in his 29-ball innings with a strike rate of over 244. His half-century came in just 24 balls. His tournament strike-rate is just below 190 among specialist batsmen who have faced at least 100 balls.
In all, the CSK batsmen hit 18 sixes, highlighting the plight of the KKR bowlers in front of the crowd, which was like playing a “home away from home” for them.
On a day, as Eden was submerged in a sea of yellow, with KKR bowlers running for cover, Kiwi opener Devon Conway once again smashed a 40-ball 56, his fourth half-century of the season.
Conway once again found a good ally in Ruturaj Gaikwad (35; 20b) as the duo put together 73 runs (45b) for the opening wicket, before Rahane unleashed his fury in his new avatar.
There was a brief consolation for KKR when the spin duo of Suyash Sharma and Varun Chakravarthy removed Conway and Gaikwad respectively within 37 runs.
With the CSK run-rate going into under-nine overs, Shivam Dube (50; 21b, 2×4, 5×6) and Rahane seized the momentum with an 85-run partnership (32b).
Both hit four sixes and a four to increase the run rate.
It was Dube who brought up his 20-ball fifty against Varun Chakravarthy, which is also his second this season.
Rahane then took his Indian teammate Yadav to the clean bowled with two sixes including a scoop, followed by a brilliant cover drive.
KKR’s shocking team combination strategy of benching Shardul Thakur and making debut for David Wiese proved to be an eyesore.
Kulwant Khejroliya, who was brought in as Thakur’s replacement, took two wickets but conceded 44 runs in his two overs.
Sunil Narine was also a big miss for KKR as he went for 23 runs in his two overs without taking a wicket.
KKR got hold of CSK’s innings thanks to Umesh Yadav’s five-run first over.
Yet before opening his account, Conway was relieved when Wiese took a return catch off his own bowling.
Thereafter, it was all about CSK who cut loose after Wiese with the Kiwi opener hitting him for a six and scoring 14 runs in the next over.
His opening partner, Gaikwad, also equaled Conway in stroke-making as CSK reached 59 for no loss in the powerplay.
These two once again put together a perfect platform in a 73-run opening stand (45b) for the likes of Rahane and Dubey to finish with a rousing spirit.
(With inputs from PTI)
Watch IPL 2023: CSK move to top spot with dominating win over KKR