CSK nearly falls short of target as Rajasthan Royals clinch victory
CSK nearly falls short of target : MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai hosted the 17th match of this year’s IPL, which ended up being another close contest between two competitive teams. Rajasthan took on to bat first and got their scoreboard ticking thanks to their second partnership between Jos Butler and Devdutt Padikkal, who scored 52 of 36 and 38 off 26 respectively. Their middle order held on to their nerves even though skipper Sanju Samson was dismissed on a duck. Ravichandran Ashwin and Shimron Hetmyer scored 30 runs each before the former got dismissed by Akash Singh. Singh and Ravindra Jadeja together took 4 wickets, but Rajasthan still managed to reach a respectable total of 175 runs.
Just like Rajasthan, Chennai witnessed a shaky start as well as their first wicket fell early and was followed by a strong second partnership. Devon Conway scored a sublime half century and was supported well by Ajinkya Rahane, who scored 31 off 19. Both of them were then sent back to the pavilion in quick successions, before the Rajasthan spinners Ashwin, Yuzavendra Chahal and Adam Zampa ran through their middle order. Skipper MS Dhoni, known for being one of the best chasers in cricket, then led charge with Ravindra Jadeja supporting him. While Jadeja hit 25 off 15 balls, Dhoni rapidly reached to 32 in just 17; but their mighty effort went futile as CSK fell short of just 3 runs.
Ashwin was rewarded player of the match for his extraordinary performance with both the bat and the ball. The next match will be played between Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans in Mohali.
