IPL 2022: Livingstone & Bowlers Lead Punjab to 54-Run Win Against CSK

MS Dhoni was dismissed after young keeper Jitesh Sharma made a stunning DRS call of Rahul Chahar's bowling.

Punjab Kings won by 54 runs against CSK

Image: BCCI

• Punjab Kings won by 54 runs as Ravindra Jadeja led CSK lost a third straight game in IPL 2022.

• Punjab had scored 180/8 while CSK were bowled out for 126 with 2 overs to spare.

• Liam Livingstone scored 60 from 32 deliveries for Punjab Kings. He also picked two wickets while Rahul Chahar bagged 3.

• Chris Jordan and Dwaine Pretorius picked 2 wickets each for CSK.

• This was CSK's second biggest defeat in IPL history in terms of runs.

Englishman Liam Livingstone played stunning hand of 60 from 32 deliveries and then picked two very big wickets, to help bowl out Chennai Super Kings for 126 at the Brabourne Stadium on Sunday night. MS Dhoni was undone by a top of the line review from debutant Jitesh Sharma as Rahul Chahar picked 3 wickets to help Punjab edge out the defending champions by 54 runs. For CSK, Shivam Dube scored 57 and provided some resistance but the early wickets had put too much pressure on them.

Ravindra Jadeja led CSK have now lost three games on the bounce at the start of IPL 2022 while Punjab returned to winning ways in their third game.

Batting first, the Punjab Kings had the worst start possible, losing captain Mayank Agarwal of the second ball, when Mukesh Choudhary had him caught by Robin Uthappa. Exactly an over later, the hard-hitting Bhanuka Rajapaksa was run out by MS Dhoni for 9, as he and Shikhar Dhawan tried to steal a quick run, in vain. Punjab huffed and puffed their way to 31/2 after 4 overs before Liam Livingstone decided to take control. He and Dhawan blasted the CSK bowling for 41 in the next two overs, as Punjab were on the way.

While Dhawan didn’t get much of the strike initially, he did find it tough to keep up with Livingstone, who was dealing in big hits. While Dhawan fed his partner the strike, Livingstone plundered the bowling, causing plenty of concern for the CSK camp, as he cleared the ropes with ease and also found the boundary without much trouble.

In the 9^th over, Punjab reached the 100 mark, and Livingstone smashed Dwayne Bravo for 6 over fine leg to get to his maiden half-century in the IPL. A couple of deliveries later, Bravo accounted for Dhawan, caught by Ravindra Jadeja for 33 of 24 deliveries. That did not stop Livingstone, who continued to throw his bat at almost everything, but could not last very much longer and was dismissed in the next over by Jadeja for 60 of 32 deliveries, having hit five boundaries and as many sixes.

MS Dhoni and CSK celebrate 

Image: BCCI

At the other end, debutant Jitesh Sharma had walked in and smashed 3 sixes in the first 12 balls he faced as Punjab’s projected score stayed upwards of 200. Jitesh’s debut innings produced 26 from 17 balls before he was sent back by Dwayne Pretorius, just before the final five overs commenced. Punjab were 146/5 at the time.

The next over made life tougher Punjab as Chris Jordan used all his experience to not only tie down Shahrukh Khan and Odean Smith, but dismissed the Indian batter too for 6 of 11 deliveries. Pretorius went for 9 in his next over, bowling 3 wides in it with the batters looking to finish well.

However, Jordan wasn’t allowing that as Jordan, in his final over, got Smith for 3, caught by Bravo, as Punjab’s momentum tapered away. Jordan finished with figures of 2/23 in 4 overs. Rahul Chahar then added 12 to the cause before Pretorius sent him back and Bravo completed the innings with a final over of 4 runs with Punjab finishing on 180/8.

In response, CSK had a horror start, as they lost a flurry of wickets in the powerplay. The first to depart was Ruturaj Gaikwad for 1, caught at first slip by Dhawan of Kagiso Rabada. A few deliveries later, debutant Vaibhav Arora sent the veteran Robin Uthappa back to the hut for 13 and then cleaned up Moeen Ali for 0. Left arm pacer Arshdeep Singh knocked over Jadeja for a duck in the final over of the powerplay as CSK finished the first phase with the score at 27/4.

Liam Livingstone picked two wickets of two balls

Image: BCCI

A 13-run stand followed between Ambati Rayudu and Shivam Dube before the right-hander was caught behind brilliantly by Jitesh Sharma of Odean Smith for 13 of 21 deliveries. CSK had lost half their side for 36.

MSD joined Dube in the middle and the duo had steady the ship, getting the score above 50 in the 10^th over. Dhoni did not start fluently against spin while Dube was finding the boundary here and there in the meantime.

The duo kept CSK in the game, just about, before Dube took on Rabada and hammered him back over his head for two sixes and then got to his half-century as well. CSK at the time had 6 overs to go with 91 required to complete a stiff chase.

However, Livingstone made his mark with the ball in the 15^th over, as he deceived Dube in the next over and him caught at short third man for 57 of 30 deliveries. Dube had smashed 6 fours and 3 sixes and put a 62-run stand with Dhoni. Off the very next delivery, the last of the over, Livingstone took a brilliant one-handed diving catch of his own bowling to send Dwayne Bravo packing for a first-ball duck.

Rahul Chahar got into the act in the next over and sent Pretorius packing in a 9-run over while Chris Jordan survived an LBW thanks to the DRS, before MSD smashed Livingstone’s hat-trick ball for a six over cow corner of the next over. Livingstone’s third costed Punjab 14 as the required rate rose to 20 runs an over for CSK, who had MS and Jordan in the middle.

Right at the start of the next over, Chahar slipped one down legside and Jitesh Sharma picked up on the slightest edge of Dhoni’s bat and immediately called for a review after the umpire ruled otherwise. The replays showed that the young keeper was correct and MS had to walk back for 23 of 28 deliveries, all thanks to a brilliant DRS call from one of the debutants on the day.

Dhoni was wicket number 9 and Chahar ended the over with the scalp of Jordan too, as Punjab won by 54 runs. Chahar finished with 3 wickets to his name while Livingstone and debutant Arora picked two each. Rabada, Arshdeep and Smith picked 1 each to hand Chennai a third consecutive defeat.