Mumbai Indians (MI) started the Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019 as favourites against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and justified top billing by completing a hat-trick of wins against the defending champions this season at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai on Tuesday.
But that's not the end of CSK's campaign. They will have another chance to make the finals. They wait the winners of tomorrow's Eliminator between Delhi Capitals (DC) and SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) for the Qualifier 2.
Batting first, CSK set a modest 132-run target for MI thanks to an unbeaten 66-run fifth wicket stand between MS Dhoni and Ambati Rayudu. But Suryakumar Yadav played one of his finest knocks on a sluggish Chepauk pitch, which offered considerable turn and odd bounce, to help MI become the first team enter the final. He batted in a copybook fashion scoring an unbeaten 71 off 54 balls with MI reaching the target in 18.3 overs. He also stitched a brilliant 80-run stand with Ishan Kishan to deflate the hosts. The target of 132 wasn't a big one but once the below-par Chepauk pitch was factored in, the chasing team had its own set of challenges.
By the way, Dhoni said that "somebody has to lose".
Mumbai have three days rest before the final. And the numerology is working just fine for them. 2013, 2015, 2017 and now a possible title in 2019.
For the record, MI have won four matches against CSK on the trot. And no team has done it and unlikely to. And three of those wins came at Chepauk.
Man of the match: Suryakumar Yadav.
Brief Scores:
Chennai Super Kings: 131/4 (MS Dhoni 37 no off 29, Ambati Rayudu 42 no off 37; Rahul Chahar 2/14)
Mumbai Indians: 131/4 in 18.3 overs (Suryakumar Yadav 71 no off 54; Imran Tahir 2/33).
Playing XIs:
Chennai Super Kings: Shane Watson, Murali Vijay, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Ambati Rayudu, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Deepak Chahar, Imran Tahir
Mumbai Indians: Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Jayant Yadav, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga
11:00 PM IST: Deepak Chahar on with his last over. Hardik Pandya takes a single, to long-on. And a four to fine leg as Suryakumar Yadav plays it delicately over the wicketkeeper's head. A single to deep square leg and Mumbai Indians enter the final for the fifth time. They beat fellow three-time winners Chennai Super Kings by six wickets with nine balls to spare.
10:57 PM IST: Ravindra Jadeja on with his last over. Just one from it. His figures: 0/18. Good but not good enough. MI-126/4 after 18 overs. They need six from 12 balls.
10:54 PM IST: Dwayne Bravo returns for his third over. Nine runs from it. Lots of running. Three doubles and three singles and Suryakumar Yadav is struggling. MI-125/4 after 17 overs. They need seven from 18 balls.
10:47 PM IST: Suryakumar Yadav hits Imran Tahir's hat-trick ball for a double, to backward point. A single, then a dot. Hardi Pandya plays the fourth ball very fine, and a four for it. Eight runs from the over. MI-116/4 after 16 overs. They need another 16 from 24 balls. Yadav is on 64 off 45. Time out.
10:44 PM IST: Suddenly it's gripping. And CSK miss a team hat-trick. A four to third man as Suryakumar Yadav's fine nick eludes Shane Watson at first slip. Two dot balls, then a couple to deep backward point. Some fine footwork there. Seven runs from the over. MI-108/4 after 15 overs. They need 24 from 30.
10:40 PM IST: Nothing seemed to be working for CSK tonight. Imran Tahir on with his third over, down the leg. The South African starts with four wides. Veteran Harbhajan Singh's chase ends in futility. A dot, then a four to backward point. A single then the wicket of Ishan Kishan. Bowled. FoW-101/3 (13.5 Over). Kishan made 28 off 31. Krunal Pandya is the new man and he is walking. Caught and bowled. Umpire's soft signal is enough. Gone. Tahir on a hat-trick. Hardik Pandya is the new man. BTW, it's Tahir's 300th T20 wicket. One of the fastest. What a feat!
10:34 PM IST: Ravindra Jadeja returns for his second over. Seven runs from it, including a four off the last ball, hit by Suryakumar Yadav to third man. He is on 48 off 35. MI-92/2 after 13 overs.
10:31 PM IST: A 64-run stand in 8.4 overs between Suryakumar Yadav (43 off 32) and Ishan Kishan (27 off 26) deflates CSK. But Kishan needed some time off, and medical attention. Hamstrung. Harbhajan Singh on with his last over. Five from his last over. MI-85/2 after 12 overs. Harbhajan's figures: 1/25. They need 47 from 48.
10:26 PM IST: Suryakumar Yadav continues to find the gaps with ease. He hits Imran Tahir for back-to-back fours through cover off the third and fourth balls. MI-80/2 after 11 overs.
10:22 POM IST: Dwayne Bravo on with his second over. 10 runs from it. Suryakumar Yadav takes a double off the first ball, then a four off the second, through cover. MI-69/2 after 10 overs.
10:14 PM IST: Imran Tahir on. Five singles from the over. MI-59/2 after nine overs. They need another 73 from 66 balls. Time out.
10:11 PM IST: Dwayne Bravo gets an early over, in the ninth over. Six runs from the medium pacer -- four singles and a double. MI-54/2.
10:06 PM IST: Ravindra Jadeja gets his first over. Just four runs from it -- two singles and a dot. MI-48/2 after seven overs. They need 84 from 78 balls.
10:04 PM IST: Another 11-run over for MI. Ishan Kishan hits Harbhajan Singh for a four off the fourth ball to deep and a six off the sixth ball over deep mid-wicket. MI-44/2 after six overs.
10:00 PM IST: Deepak Chahar on with his third over. 11 runs from it, including two back-to-back fours off the second and third balls. Deepak Chahar hits the second ball straight and his second boundary, then gets a life, dropped by Murali Vijay at mid-on. MI-33/2 after five overs.
9:55 PM IST: Harbhajan Singh strikes in his second over. Quinton de Kock goes for a biggie, but finds his South African compatriot Faf du Plessis taking a very good catch at long-off. FoW-21/2 (3.2 Over). de Kock made eight off 12. Ishan Kishan is the new man. Two runs from the over. MI-22/2 after four overs. They need 110 runs.
9:49 PM IST: Deepak Chahar on with his second over. Five runs from the over, including a four off the fourth ball, hit by Quinton de Kock to fine leg. MI-20/1 after three overs. They need 112 runs.
9:44 PM IST: Harbhajan Singh on with the second over. Seven runs, including a four and three wides. Quinton de Kock hits the fourth ball past backward point for a four. MI-15/1 after two overs.
9:40 PM IST: What a start to the chase. Rohit Sharma hits the first ball for a four through extra cover, beautifully timed. Then, Deepak Chahar traps him with a beauty. Reviewed and it returned as the umpire's call. FoW-1/4 (0.2 Over). And with that Rohit's playoff pain continues. Right-handed batsman Suryakumar Yadav is the new man. And almost a wicket. Yadav's fine cut eludes two fielders at short fine leg and slip. Eight runs from the over. MI-8/1.
9:16 PM IST: Brilliant stuff from Jasprit Bumrah. Just nine runs from the last over. No boundary. MS Dhoni settles with runnings. Bumrah's figures: 0/31. CSK-131/4. Dhoni remained unbeaten on 37 off 29, while Ambati Rayudu made 42 off 37. A good score?
9:11 PM IST: Jasprit Bumrah gets the better of MS Dhoni. A very good catch taken by Ishan Kishan at point, even as Dhoni's bat comes out flying. Then the no-ball drama. Dhoni sticks around and the replay shows a front-foot no ball. Dhoni summons new gloves and rubs them with Chennai dirt. Nigel Llong is happy. Two to square leg for a double, then a single. CSK-126/4 (19.2 Over).
9:07 PM IST: Lasith Malinga on with the penultimate over. A dot to MS Dhoni, then one leg bye. Malinga misses the yorker and gets hit. A huge six over deep over mid-wicket. Then another, this time over long on. These are stunning hit from the man himself. And Mumbai Indians are rattled. A swinging yorker and a dot. Brilliant response from the finest T20 bowler. A single to end the over. 15 runs from it. CSK-122/4 after 19 overs. And Dhoni retains the strike. 57-run stand in 41.
8:59 PM IST: Very good over from Jasprit Bumrah. Eight runs from it. Ambati Rayudu hits the first ball for a four to square leg. A pull shot to perfection. Then four singles. CSK-107/4 after 18 overs.
8:54 PM IST: Rahul Chahar completes his spell too. Three singles, then three dots to MS Dhoni. His figures: 2/14. Brilliant from the teenager. CSK-99/4 after 17 overs.
8:51 PM IST: Krunal Pandya completes his spell. Five runs from the last over. His figures: 1/21. CSK-96/4 after 16 overs. 31 runs from the last four overs.
8:46 PM IST: Eight runs from Hardik Pandya's second over. Ambati Rayudu hits the third ball for a four, the ball landing just inside the long-off boundary rope. CSK-91/4 after fifteen overs.
8:41 PM IST: MS Dhoni arrives and starts his onslaught. He's not playing the waiting game. He hits Jayant Yadav for a six off the second ball, over long on, followed by a double and a single. Then MSD survives a run-out chance, but Hardik Pandya's throw to the bowler was way off the mark. Ambati Rayudu hits the last ball for six, over deep mid-wicket. Call it Dhoni effect. 15 runs from the over. CSK-83/4 after 14 overs.
8:33 PM IST: Rahul Chahar on with his third over and a wicket off the first ball. He had Murali Vijay stumped. A ripper of a delivery, spinning square to beat Vijay, who's one of the best players of spin. Quinton de Kock does the rest, MSD style. 66/4 (12.1 Over). Vijay made 26 off 26. And that brings Dhoni in the centre. Three runs from the over. CSK-68/4 after 13 overs. Time out.
8:28 PM IST: Jasprit Bumrah on with his second over. Four runs from it -- two singles and a double. Meanwhile, Murali Vijay and Ambati Rayudu have added 33 in 37 for the fourth wicket. CSK-65/3 after 12 overs.
8:23 PM IST: Lasith Malinga comes back for his second over. A very long over for 11 runs. A wide to Ambati Rayudu to start with, then two singles. A no ball for height to Rayudu. Rayudu hit the free-hit for a four to long leg. Three more singles. CSK-61/3 after 11 overs.
8:17 PM IST: Another tidy over from Jayant Yadav. Four singles from the first four balls. CSK-50/3 after 10 overs.
8:10 PM IST: Krunal Pandya on his third over. Very good over. Two runs from the over. CSK-46/3 after nine overs. And umpire Nitin Menon signals time out.
8:08 PM IST: Hardik Pandya, who announced his arrival at this venue against the same oppositions in 2015, is on with his first over. Two singles, then a dot to Ambati Rayudu. A deft touch to third man for a single. Another dot then a double to backward point. Murali Vijay is looking in good touch. Five runs from the over. CSK-44/3 after eight overs.
8:03 PM IST: Ambati Rayudu is the new man for CSK and Rahul Chahar continues with his second over. Rayudu takes a single off the first ball, followed by another as Murali Vijay plays to long-off. A dot, then another single. A dot then, Vijay hits through cover and beat a diving Kieron Pollard for a four. Seven runs from the over. CSK-39/3 after seven overs.
7:59 PM IST: Krunal Pandya on with his second over. First ball hit for a four, flicked by an elegant Murali Vijay. A dot, then Vijay plays a brilliant slog sweep for a four, with the ball landing just inside the short fine leg boundary. A quick single, then a dot to Shane Watson. Then Watson throws his wicket away. Caught at mid-on by Jayant Yadav. FoW-32/3 (5.6 Over). Watson made 10 off 13.
7:55 PM IST: Jasprit Bumrah on with the fifth over. A dot to Shane Watson, then a four through fine leg. Vijay takes a single off the fifth ball, to backward point, for his first run. What a shot from Watson. Ball climbs on him, but the Aussie plays a very good looking pull shot for a four, over mid-wicket. 10 runs from the over. CSK-23/2 after five overs.
7:50 PM IST: Jayant Yadav gets his first over. A front ball no ball to start with. Free-hit hit for a straight four, but the umpires call it a dead ball for a moving fielder. Raina hits the reload for a four, lofting over backward square leg. A dot, then the bid wicket. Yadav had Raina caught and bowled. Skier, well taken. FoW-12/2 (3.3 Over). Murali Vijay is the new man. First run for Shane Watson in the seventh ball. Six runs from the over. CSK-13/2 after four overs.
7:43 PM IST: Rahul Chahar, the prodigious left-spinner, strikes with his first ball. Caught at backward point by sub Anmolpreet Singh. Faf du Plessis becomes Chahar's 11th victim this season. FoW-6/1 (2.1 Over). Suresh Raina, the new man, is facing trouble, turning, ripping. After two dots, the left-handed batsman goes for heave, to backward point. A single for the effort. Then there is bounce too from the youngster. One run from the over. CSK-7/1 after three overs.
7:37 PM IST: Left-arm spinner Krunal Pandya on with the second over. A dot than a four, then a risky shot from Faf du Plessis, just sailing over a jumping Jasprit Bumrah at short third man for a four. A dot, then a single to deep mid-wicket. Shane Watson gets his first strike. A dot, and beaten. Six runs from the over. CSK-7/1 after two overs.
7:34 PM IST: Lasith Malinga with the first over of the Qualifier 1, to Faf du Plessis. Test match for CSK, as expected. One dot, two dots, three dots, four dots, five dots to the right-handed batsman. And a single to cover for one run. Watchfull starts. There's hint of movement.
7:27 PM IST: Hope you enjoy this :-)
7:20 PM IST: And we have some key numbers:
- First is about CSK's loophole against MI, again. They have lost only twice in their last 20 IPL matches at home, and both were Mumbai Indians -- by 6 wickets in 2015 and 80 runs this season.
- Second is about Lasith Malinga. His 30 wickets are the most by any bowler against CSK.
- Only Virat Kohli (747) has more runs than Rohit Sharma (686) by a batsman against CSK. But Rohit has a rather poor show when it comes to playoffs.
- Then there's this stunning fact about Suresh Raina and MI. He has scored 800+ runs against MI while no other player has even managed 700.
7:14 PM IST: Even before the first ball is bowled, Ravindra Jadeja has scored a ton.
7:04 PM IST: One changes each. Mumbai Indians brought offspinner Jayant Yadav in for pacer Mitchell McClenaghan. For Chennai Super Kings, Murali Vijay in for injured Kedar Jadhav.
7:01 PM IST: Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni has won the toss and opted to bat against Mumbai Indians.
6:58 PM IST: Continuing with the toss, Sanjay Manjrekar, who was in the centre for pitch report for the official broadcasters said that team winning the toss should bat first. That's strange considering the trend. But, he reinforced the fact that it will not be a high-scoring match despite groundsmen getting enough time to make it "better playing surface".
6:53 PM IST: 170 is the highest score at the venue. And there is one peculiar tweet from the ICC on the eve of the match.
6:45 PM IST: As many as six players have win man of the match awards for MI, as against five for CSK. Meaning, this fixture has effectively 11 match winners. MS Dhoni and Hardik Pandya lead the charts with three MoM awards. Here are the MoM winners and matches:
CSK:
Harbhajan Singh (2) vs RCB at home, vs KXIP at home
Shane Watson (2) vs DC away, vs SRH at home
MS Dhoni (3) vs RR at both home and away, vs DC at home
Deepak Chahar vs KKR at home
Imran Tahir vs KKR away
MI:
Jasprit Bumrah (2) vs RCB at home, vs SRH at home
Hardik Pandya (3) vs CSK at home, vs DC away, vs KKR at home
Alzarri Joseph vs SRH away
Kieron Pollard vs KXIP away
Lasith Malinga vs RCB at home
Rohit Sharma vs CSK away
6:33 PM IST: Last month, MI defeated CSK in their first leg league match to become the first team to 100 IPL matches. Now, CSK have a chance to become the second team to do so.
6:25 PM IST: Ahead of the toss, here are probable XIs:
CSK: Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Dhruv Shorey, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Deepak Chahar, Imran Tahir
MI: Quinton de Kock (wk), Rohit Sharma (c), Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard, Mitchell McClenaghan, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga
5:36 PM IST: So who will win?
MI have the upper hand. They are on a red hot form, have a better team combination and a very good record against CSK at Chepauk. CSK's last win against MI at the venue came way back in 2010. That's some history. But with Dhoni, CSK are still a force to reckon with. If CSK top-order fires, then it will be an equal match-up.
4:45 PM IST: Players to look out for
MS Dhoni and Imran Tahir for CSK
All eyes will be on Dhoni. He is CSK's leading run scorer (368 from 12 matches with three fifties). With an unreliable top order, what Dhoni does with the bat will have a direct bearing on the result.
On a traditionally sluggish Chepauk wicket, Imran Tahir has thrived with leg spin. The Lahore-born spinner has 21 wickets, the second most this season after Kagiso Rabada (25). With Harbhajan Singh, he forms a potent spin attack.
Krunal Pandya and Lasith Malinga for MI
Krunal Pandya is the second most valuable player of the season, behind Kolkata Knight Riders' (KKR) Andre Russell. The all-rounder can win the match single-handedly.
Legendary Lasith Malinga will play a decisive role. It will be interesting to see how skipper Rohit utilises his four overs.
4:35 PM IST: Captains speak
Rohit Sharma, after Mumbai Indians' win over Kolkata Knight Riders: "It is something we know about the IPL that the business end matters, we always come back well in the second half of this tournament. In all the three trophies that we've won, the boys have picked themselves up in the business end."
MS Dhoni, after his team's defeat to Kings XI Punjab: "Quite happy with the way we bowled, despite giving a few runs at the start. That's something you have to keep in mind, if you can't win a game, you make sure you get the opposition to get the runs in the most number of overs. You have to quickly adapt, learn and reassess."
3:32 PM IST: Form guide (latest first)
Mumbai Indians beat Kolkata Knight Riders by nine wickets, beat SunRisers Hyderabad in the Super Over, lost to Kolkata Knight Riders by 34 runs.
Chennai Super Kings lost to Kings XI Punjab by six wickets, beat Delhi Capitals by 80 runs, lost to Mumbai Indians by 46 runs
3:00 PM IST: Road to playoffs
CSK (2nd - nine wins from 14 matches with NRR of +0.131)
The defending champions lost just one of first eight and one of seven home matches. They were the first to qualify for the playoffs, but struggled as the tournament progressed, especially when MS Dhoni is not around. They won just two matches in the final six outings:
MI (1st - nine wins from 14 matches with NRR of +0.421)
Unlike in the previous seasons, MI benefitted for a good start to the season. And they earned the right to play in the playoffs with a game to spare, then displaced CSK with a win over KKR on the final league match.
Squads
CSK: MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Murali Vijay, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Shorey, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Rituraj Gaikwad, Dwayne Bravo, Karn Sharma, Imran Tahir, Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell Santner, Shardul Thakur, Mohit Sharma, K M Asif, Deepak Chahar, N Jagadeesan, Scott Kuggeleijn.
MI: Rohit Sharma, Quinton de Kock, Suryakumar Yadav, Yuvraj Singh, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mayank Markande, Rahul Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Anmolpreet Singh, Siddhesh Lad, Ankul Roy, Evin Lewis, Pankaj Jaiswal, Ben Cutting, Ishan Kishan, Aditya Tare, Rasikh Salam, Barinder Sran, Jayant Yadav, Beuran Hendricks and Lasith Malinga.
