Dhoni-led CSK beat Punjab again

CSK made no changes to their playing eleven.

KXIP made one change to their playinG(o)eleven – Gagandeep Singh made way for Karan.

On winning the toss, Yuvraj Singh, KXIP’s skipper, chose to field.

The first Powerplay of CSK’s innings – which was the mandatory Powerplay – was between the first and the sixth over. They scored 53, and lost a couple of wickets.

Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan, who faced four balls, scored eight. His runs came by way of boundaries. Four balls into the match, he was caught by Mahela Jayawardene. Sreesanth broke the 10-run stand.

Stephen Fleming, who faced four balls, scored a run. Ten balls later, he was caught by Goel. Sreesanth broke the 10-run stand.

CSK scored 50 off 5.2 overs (33 balls). The number of extras they had conceded at that point gave KXIP no reason to be in seventh heaven.

Suresh Raina, whose 17-ball innings included four boundaries, scored 26. Twenty-seven balls after Fleming’s dismissal, he was caught by Shaun Marsh. Piyush Chawla broke the 44-run stand.

CSK scored 100 off 10.5 overs (66 balls). KXIP had conceded 10 extras at that point.

The fourth-wicket pair put on 50 off 33 balls. While Subramaniam Badrinath’s contribution to the partnership was 21, the contribution of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, CSK’s skipper, to it was 28. Extras’ contribution to the partnership was three.

Badrinath’s half-century – which included four boundaries and three sixes – came off 37 balls.

CSK scored 150 off 16.1 overs (98 balls). KXIP had conceded a dozen extras at that point.

Badrinath, whose 47-ball innings included half-a-dozen boundaries, in addition to the aforementioned number of sixes, eventually scored 64. Sixty-four balls after Raina’s dismissal, he was caught by Yuvraj. V R V Singh broke the 91-run partnership.

Dhoni’s half-century – which included a boundary and three sixes – came off 37 balls.

He eventually scored 60 off 43 balls, which included a couple of boundaries and four sixes. He was unbeaten, as was Albie Morkel, who faced half-a-dozen balls, scoring seven.

KXIP eventually conceded 15 extras. CSK scored 181 for the loss of four wickets off 20 overs.

Yuvraj, who bowled an over, conceded eight. He was wicketless, as were James Hopes and Irfan Pathan, who faced four overs apiece. While the former conceded 36, the latter conceded 33.

Chawla, who bowled three overs, conceded 36. He picked up a wicket, as did V R V, who bowled four overs, conceding 35.

Sreesanth, who bowled four overs, conceded 29. He picked up a couple of scalps.

The first Powerplay of KXIP’s innings – which was the mandatory Powerplay – was between the first and the sixth over. They scored 35, and lost a couple of wickets.

Although his innings included a boundary and a six, Hopes had no reason to be in seventh heaven – he scored 14. A dozen balls into the chase, he was caught by Dhoni. Morkel broke the 16-run stand.

Goel had no reason to be in seventh heaven – he scored a run. Fifteen balls later, he was caught by Morkel. Manpreet Gony broke the 13-run stand.

KXIP scored 50 off 7.3 overs (45 balls). CSK hadn’t conceded any extras at that point.

The third-wicket pair put on 50 off 36 balls. While Marsh’s contribution to the partnership was 30, Ramnaresh Sarwan’s contribution to it was 19. Extras’ contribution to the partnership was a run.

Marsh’s half-century – which included three boundaries and as many sixes – came off 33 balls.

Sarwan, who faced 22 balls, eventually scored 20. Lakshmipathy Balaji, the player of the match, broke the 66-run partnership.

Marsh, whose 38-ball innings included the aforementioned number of boundaries, in addition to four sixes, eventually scored 58. Four balls later, he was caught by Palani Amarnath. Balaji broke the one-run stand.

Yuvraj, who faced five balls, scored a couple. A couple of balls later, he was caught by Fleming. Amarnath broke the one-run stand.

KXIP scored 100 off 13.5 overs (83 balls). CSK had conceded a couple of extras at that point.

Jayawardene, whose six-ball innings included a six, scored eight. Eleven balls after Yuvraj’s dismissal, he was caught by Vidyut. Muttiah Muralitharan broke the 18-run stand.

KXIP scored 150 off 18.1 overs (109 balls). CSK had conceded three extras at that point. That was, incidentally, the number of extras they eventually conceded.

Pathan, whose 18-ball innings included three boundaries and as many sixes, scored 40. Twenty-seven balls later, he was caught by Raina. Balaji broke the 48-run stand.

The eighth-wicket pair didn’t get off the mark. Chawla, whose 15-ball innings included a boundary and a six, scored 17. The next ball, he was caught by Chamara Kapugedera off the bowling of Balaji.

Sreesanth, who didn’t face a ball, was unbeaten.

The (Dho)ninth-wicket pair didn’t get off the mark. V R V, who faced a ball, didn’t open his account. The next ball, he was caught behind off the bowling of Balaji.

Uday Kaul, who faced a ball, didn’t get off the mark. He was unbeaten.

KXIP, who scored 163 for the loss of nine wickets off 20 overs, lost by 18 runs.

Kapugedera, who bowled a wicketless over, conceded eight.

Amarnath, who bowled three overs, conceded 35. He picked up a wicket, as did Gony, Muralitharan and Morkel, who bowled four overs apiece. They conceded 38, 32, and 25, respectively.

Balaji, who bowled four overs, conceded 24. He picked up five scalps.