Chennai: After five futile attempts from visiting teams, Chennai Super Kings’ Chepauk fortress was finally breached by Mumbai Indians. Mumbai all-rounder Hardik Pandya came up with a blistering 8-ball 21 — that included three sixes in the penultimate over off left-arm spinning all-rounder Pawan Negi — to see his team home with four balls to spare and stay in contention for the play-off here at the M.A. Chidambaram on Friday.
Chasing 158, Mumbai needed 30 in the final two overs. Young Negi (0/34) succumbed under pressure and conceded 25 runs in the 19th over with Ambati Rayudu (34 not out) and Pandiya clubbing four sixes over the bowlers’ head. Mumbai were off to a frenetic start. The right-left opening duo of Parthiv Patel (45) and Lendl Simmons (38) added 84 in 10.1 overs before comeback man R. Ashwin (2/17) turned it around for the home team.
While Patel took the orthodox route in finding the boundaries, his West Indian partner Simmons gave Ashish Nehra (0/45 in 3 overs)a pasting. He chipped down the track and launched purple cap holder Nehra over long on in the fifth over and followed it up with a typical Caribbean style one-handed lofted six over the sight screen off Ashwin in the next. The Mumbai openers smashed seven fours and two sixes in the power play.
Ashwin’s twin strike — dismissing Patel and Simmons in the same over — got Chennai back into the match but it was their poor fielding that cost them the match. Chennai, who set high standards in the field, spilled as many as five chances on the day. Patel was dropped in the third over at square leg by Negi, Ravindra Jadeja failed to break the stumps to run Simmons out at the half-way mark, skipper Rohit Sharma was given a reprieve twice – Suresh Raina at slip and Faf du Plessis at long-off – and the dismal show on the park ended with Jadeja dropping Pandya in the final over.
Earlier, Negi stroked a belliegerent 17-ball 36 (4x4s, 1x6s) to guide Chennai Super Kings to a competitive 158/5 on a sluggish Chepauk wicket.
Walking in at the fall of Faf du Plessis, Negi, alongside skipper M.S. Dhoni (39*) added 54 runs for the fifth wicket in just 28 balls. Negi was run out off the final ball of the innings. Mumbai medium pacers Mitchell McClenaghan (1/34) and Marchant de Lange (1/30), who were tidy in their initial spells, were taken apart by a fearless Negi, whose uninhibited bat swing looked fabulous.
The impressive performances of left-arm spinning all-rounder Negi forced CSK to field three spinners for the first time this season with Ravindra Jadeja being the third. Electing to bat, the story which unfolded at Chepauk was the same as it has been in the earlier.
Scorecard
Chennai Super Kings: D. Smith c Pandya b Harbhajan 27, B. McCullum c Pandya b Vinay 23, S. Raina c Pandya b Suchith 10, F. du Plessis c Simmons b McClenaghan 17, M.S. Dhoni (not out) 39, P. Negi (run out) 36. Extras: (w-6) 6. Total (for five wickets in 20 overs) 158.
FoW: 1-44, 2-64, 3-65, 4-104, 5-158.
Bowling: McClenaghan 4-0-34-1, Marchant de Lange 4-1-30-0, Suchith 4-0-21-1, Vinay 3-0-33-1, Harbhajan 4-0-36-1, Pandya 1-0-4-0.
Mumbai Indians: L. Simmons c Smith b Ashwin 38, P. Patel c du Plessis b Ashwin 45, R. Sharma c Raina b Bravo 18, K. Pollard (run out) Bravo 1, A. Rayudu (not out) 34, H. Pandya (not out) 21. Extras (b-1, w-1) 2. Total (for four wickets in 19.2 overs) 159.
Fow: 1-84, 2-85, 3-86, 4-125.
Bowling: R. Ashwin 4-0-17-2, M. Sharma 2-0-19-0, A. Nehra 3-0-450, R. Jadeja 4-0-27-0, P. Negi 4-0-34-0, D. Bravo 2.2-0-16-1.
