2 mistakes and 1 masterstroke by CSK in their IPL 2023 match vs RCB
The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) narrowly beat the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by eight runs in a thrilling 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) contest on Monday, April 17.
The Men in Yellow moved to third in the standings with the victory and now have six points from five matches. They will next take on the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at home on Friday, April 21.
Ahead of their clash against the Orange Army, the Super Kings will know that they have a few problem areas to address. Their performance against RCB wasn't the most convincing as the home side almost pulled off a record run-chase.
Here are two mistakes and one masterstroke made by CSK in their IPL 2023 match against RCB.
#3 Mistake - CSK bowled five overs of pace in the powerplay
CSK got off to a good start in the powerplay as Akash Singh and Tushar Deshpande picked up a wicket each in the first two overs. While the left-arm pacer sent Virat Kohli back to the hut, Deshpande prised out Mahipal Lomror.
After taking two quick wickets, Chennai could have immediately put the RCB batting pair of Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell on the backfoot by introducing spin. However, they waited until the last over of the powerplay to bring Maheesh Theekshana into the attack, and both batters were set and in full flow by then.
CSK don't often bowl Ravindra Jadeja in the powerplay, but they could have considered it to put some extra pressure on Du Plessis and Maxwell. Even Theekshana could've been introduced earlier, with the three overs of pace following Lomror's wicket costing the Men in Yellow quite a few runs.
#2 Masterstroke - MS Dhoni and Co. held their nerve to pull things back at the death
Few captains control the game the way MS Dhoni does, and he ensured that his team held their nerve under pressure to sneak over the line.
Dinesh Karthik played an enterprising cameo after coming in, managing to find a four and a six during the two overs of spin he had to negotiate. RCB's required run rate was well in control even at the death, with Karthik finding the boundary effortlessly for the first time this season.
However, Dhoni was in his element as the match approached its fag end. He held Jadeja back to give him a longer leg-side boundary against Shahbaz Ahmed, and the left-arm spinner bowled a decent over. Theekshana was then played out safely before the fast bowlers executed their plans well.
Deshpande and Matheesha Pathirana hit their yorkers to near-perfection. Even when they missed, they didn't miss by much. In batting-friendly conditions, CSK managed to wrest the game from RCB's grasp in admirable fashion.
#1 Mistake - The Super Kings' catching was atrocious in Bangalore
CSK seemed to have made significant improvements in the fielding department before their clash against RCB. The Men in Yellow dropped as many as four catches on the night, and any one of them could've cost them the match.
Theekshana was the first culprit as he shelled a sitter to hand Lomror a reprieve. Although the RCB No. 3 was dismissed in the very next over, his day didn't get much better.
The Sri Lankan then grassed a straightforward caught-and-bowled chance to give Du Plessis his second lifeline of the match. Earlier in the game, the RCB skipper got a nick, with a clearly physically compromised Dhoni failing to react well to the edge.
Towards the end of the game, Dinesh Karthik got a slice of luck. The keeper-batter miscued one in the air but Ruturaj Gaikwad, stationed at long-on, put down the offering. Karthik immediately found the boundary but holed out to deep midwicket a ball later, with Theekshana finally managing to cling on to one.
CSK's terrible catching could've cost them heavily on another day.