Defending IPL champions, Chennai Super Kings lost to Punjab Kings by 11 runs despite Ambati Rayudu's 78 off 39 balls for sixth defeat in eight matches.
Chennai Super Kings captain Ravindra Jadeja has blamed the team's failure during powerplay for their 11-run defeat against Punjab Kings in match 38 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Monday. The defeat leaves the defending champions in a precarious position. They are ninth with two wins in eight matches.
Chasing a target of 188 runs, Chennai Super Kings were 32/2 in the powerplay, and it became 40/3 the next over. Batting at four down, Ambati Rayudu played a sensational knock, but the four-time champions could manage only 176/6 and slump to their sixth defeat in eight matches.
After the match, Ravindra Jadeja, who replaced legendary MS Dhoni as the captain of the team, said, "we are not getting good starts in the first six overs, that's where we are lacking and hopefully we will come back stronger."
Ambati Rayudu's 39-ball 78, featuring seven fours and six sixes, kept Chennai Super Kings in the hunt. But after the dismissal of Rayudu in the 18th over, the chase faltered as MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja couldn't muster enough boundaries. They needed 35 runs in the last two overs, and 27 in the last over.
Hailing Ambati Rayudu's effort with the bat, Jadeja said that "He [Rayudu] was batting brilliantly, if we could've restricted them to under 175 it would've been good. We felt we gave away 10-15 runs extra at the end. We did not execute our plans very well."
Chennai Super Kings next play Sunrisers Hyderabad in a massive match. With five teams already on 10 points each, CSK will need to win all their remaining six matches to stay in the reckoning for IPL 2022 playoffs.
The top four teams after the group stage qualify for the play-offs.
Meanwhile, the BCCI has confirmed Eden Gardens in Kolkata and Narendra Modi Stadium for the playoffs and the final.
Eden Gardens will host the first IPL 2022 Qualifier on May 24, and the IPL 2022 eliminator on May 25.
Narendra Modi Stadium will host Qualifier 2 and final on May 27 and 29 respectively.