Delhi Capitals cruised to their second-straight win in this Indian Premier League (IPL) after defeating Chennai Super Kings by 44 runs on Friday, 25 September.
Opener Prithvi Shaw starred with a 43-ball 64 to help DC post 175/3 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
CSK, who had won the toss and opted to chase, managed 131/7 in their 20 overs, with none of the batsman managing to reach the 50-run mark. This was the three-time champions’ second-straight loss, after they lost to Rajasthan Royals by 16 runs.
This is the first time since 2010 that DC have started an IPL season with two consecutive victories. They are on top of the table now with four points.
A Shaw Show in Dubai
Put in to bat, the 20-year-old got DC off to a good start with fellow opener Shikhar Dhawan, as the duo added 88 runs in the first 10 overs. Shaw reached the half-century mark off 35 deliveries.
Spinner Piyush Chawla, who got hit for 13 runs and 11 runs in his first two overs, eventually provided a breakthrough by trapping Dhawan lbw for 35 (off 27 balls).
Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant joined Shaw at the crease and two had added just nine runs together, when the latter was stumped by Dhoni for 64 (off 43 balls) off a delivery by Chawla (2/33). Shaw’s knock included one six and nine boundaries.
Interestingly, replays showed that Deepak Chahar had got an inside edge off Shaw that was collected by Dhoni but no CSK player appealed for the catch and it went unnoticed.
A blinder by Dhoni ended the 58-run stand between captain Shreyas Iyer and Pant as the former departed for 26 (off 22 balls) on the final ball of the 19th over.
Dhoni Bats at 6, But CSK Lose Again
Openers Shane Watson (14) and Murali Vijay (10) failed to give Chennai Super Kings a solid start, falling in the 5th and 6th overs, respectively. Both batsmen were caught out, reducing the three-time champions to 34/2 in 6 overs.
Number 3 batsman Faf du Plessis, who has scored two half-centuries in CSK’s two matches so far, was once again the only one who put up a fight in the innings.
He stitched a 54-run stand with Kedar Jadhav, before the latter was dismissed by Anrich Nortje (2/21) for a 21-ball 26. Faf was caught out by Pant off a delivery by Rabada (3/26) for a 35-ball 43. CSK were 113/5, still needing 63 runs from 16 balls.
Dhoni came in to bat Number 6, but could not rescue the chase. He added 15 runs off 12 balls before falling in the 20th over. Rabada also dismissed Jadeja for 12 on the final ball of the innings.
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