Clinical CSK hand RCB seventh straight defeat in UAE to go top

The one-sided nature of the much-hyped Southern derby continued as Chennai Super Kings registered their 9th win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in the last 11 meetings to go top of the IPL 2021 table. Bowling first, a fine second-half display from the seamers helped CSK restrict RCB to 156, post which their batters cruised to the finish line seamlessly to register a convincing six-wicket win. 

Kohli, Padikkal bury KKR memories to give the perfect start

After the 19-over nightmare that was the innings against Kolkata Knight Riders, the Royal Challengers Bangalore needed their openers to fire to reassure the whole side that the day was indeed a new one. And fire they did. Both Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal posted fifties, and showcased the enviously good chemistry they share between themselves. 

It all started in the very first over, where the duo struck two sumptuous boundaries off Deepak Chahar. After that, they simply did not look back. 

Kohli looked as good as he ever has since the start of last season, while Padikkal kept switching gears up and down nonchalantly. Both the batters took a liking to the CSK seamers, and Kohli, in particular, flayed the seamers in the powerplay. By the end of the sixth over the RCB skipper had already sprinted his way to 33*, by which time he already had five boundaries to his name. 

The CSK bowlers simply had no answers and by the halfway mark, Kohli and Padikkal had put RCB in prime position, with the Reds racing to 90/0. 

RCB lose the plot in the second half as CSK seamers pull off a masterclass

200 looked on the cards at one point given the way RCB were going, but a stunning second-half capitulation saw them add just 66 in the final 10 overs, while losing 6 wickets. Both Kohli and Padikkal slowed down after the introduction of spin, and in no time batting started looking difficult. 

The skipper perished in the 14th over in search of quick runs, and from thereon, the innings went downhill for RCB. None of their big-hitters - De Villiers, Maxwell and David - managed to score more than 12, and with Padikkal also perishing at the wrong time, they managed a mere 25 runs off the last 24 balls.

But as bad as RCB batted, the remarkable turnaround in the second half was purely down to how well the CSK seamers bounced back. In the first 10 overs of the match, the CSK seamers bowled 8 and conceded 72 runs at an ER of 9.00, having no control whatsoever. However, in the second half, their 8 overs cost just 53 runs (ER 6.6), while they also picked up 6 wickets. 

The wreckers-in-chief were Dwayne Bravo (3/24) and Shardul Thakur (2/29), who used the slower balls to perfection on a sticky Sharjah wicket. Not only did they give the batters no pace to work around with, they also mixed up their lengths cleverly to leave the RCB batters guessing. Chahar took the clue from the two wizards and also adjusted at the end, as he brought the knuckle-ball into play and conceded just 4 runs off the penultimate over. 

Gaikwad-inspired CSK kill the chase off in the powerplay

Having faltered towards the back end with the bat, RCB desperately needed early breakthroughs with the ball to create anxiety in the CSK camp, but they were blown away by an early Gaikwad storm. And really, it took them by surprise, for the Maharashtra opener is someone known to be a slow starter.

Prior to this game, Gaikwad had a SR of 91.82 in the powerplay in IPL 2021. Today, however, the 24-year-old came out all guns blazing, and finished with a SR of 186.67 in the powerplay. 

A cracking back-foot drive off Siraj on the second ball got him going, after which he did not take the foot off the pedal. The over where he really decided to throw the kitchen sink was the fourth one bowled by Wanindu Hasaranga, where he swept the first ball to the fence and then danced down the track and dispatched the last one straight down the ground into the stands.

Gaikwad got good company from Faf du Plessis, who also finished on 29*(22) in the powerplay, and CSK, at 59/0 at the end of the sixth over, essentially killed off the chase. 

Thala and Chinna Thala take the Super Kings over the line

The wickets of Gaikwad and du Plessis in the span of 7 balls - both of whom fell to spin - threatened to bring RCB back into the game, but a quickfire 47-run stand between Moeen Ali and Ambati Rayudu dashed the hopes of Kohli & Co. A Harshal Patel double strike removed both the set batters, but the calm-headed duo of MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina took the Super Kings home to hand their fierce rivals a thumping defeat.