CLT20: Kings in keen contest
Kings XI Punjab will look to reach the final after remaining unbeaten so far
By : moses kondety
Update: 2014-10-02 01:49 GMT
Hyderabad: The marquee match of the Oppo Champions League Twenty20 semifinals is an extension of the IPL as Kings XI Punjab take on Chennai Super Kings in the second of the double header here on Thursday night. Both teams go into the game laden with the pressure of performing at their best, in front of boisterous crowds, to reach the summit clash. They have taken contrasting paths to come this far though.
Kings XI Punjab have kept their slate clean, winning all their group games while Chennai had to depend on Perth’s performance in the last group game against the Lahore Lions to make the semifinals. Not a situation a player like Dhoni would want to be in.That said, the only team CSK lost to in this tournament are reigning IPL champions KKR. A rained out game against the Lahore Lions meant the former Champions League winners had to wait till the last group game to qualify for the knockouts.
Talking of team strengths, both CSK and KXIP have some strong hitters who can win games on their own, in their ranks. Chennai boasts of robust run-getters in Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja besides captain Dhoni himself. Punjab bowlers Akshar Patel, Thissara Perera, Karanveer Singh and Anureet Singh, who have done well so far, will have a task on hand against the bristling bats in the yellow brigade.
Punjab packs much of its batting power in Virender Sehwag, Glenn Maxwell, David Miller, George Bailey, Thissara Perera and Manan Vohra, who has been in good nick of late. Dhoni would like to think his bowling band has the variety in attack though. With Ashish Nehra, Dwayne Smith, Dwayne Bravo and Mohit Sharma operating the new ball and tweakers R. Ashwin, Jadeja and Raina to turn to, the captain does have plenty of sources.
However, he would do well to relive the bitter memories of their last match at this ground. Chennai squandered a massive advantage against KKR in the opening game — defending 157, they had reduced their rivals to 51 for 5 after 9 overs before letting the match slip through their fingers.
A possible sub-plot would be exciting contest between wily CSK spinner R. Ashwin and pummeling Punjab allrounder Maxwell. It will also be interesting to see how CSK strike bowler Ashish Nehra deals with his Delhi teammate and Punjab opener Sehwag. Thrills assured, the fans are also guaranteed of an IPL team in the final. It’s time for fireworks.