IPL 2018, KXIP vs CSK: Mohit Sharma's wide yorker is SK Turning Point of the match
The Kings XI Punjab pulled off a thrilling 4-run victory against the Chennai Super Kings at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Chandigarh on Sunday (April 15). It was a tight and testing encounter for both the sides, but it was the home team that managed to pull a rabbit out of the hat when it mattered the most.
At one point during the chase, it looked like CSK were out of the game, as the required run-rate had climbed up to 18 per over. However, MS Dhoni turned things around beautifully for the visitors and in a display of raw power, brought his side right into the match.
The Men in Yellow scored as many as 19 runs each in the 18th and 19th overs of the chase respectively. They required 17 off the last six deliveries to clinch their third victory of the season. However, Mohit Sharma stepped up against his former franchise in a fabulous way and did so with surgically precise yorkers outside the off-stump.
This kind of delivery has proved to be fairly successful against the powerful willow of Dhoni in the past. Sharma executed them to perfection.
He was under high-octane pressure through the length of the over but managed to maintain his composure to deliver high-quality yorkers. It was a poetic justice for the seamer, as Dhoni had been dropped by Mayank Dagar in Sharma's third over of the game.
The right-arm bowler stepped up when it mattered the most and conjured an absolutely beautiful delivery off the third ball of the ultimate over. His incredible effort on the day deserved the result he managed to snatch for his side at the end of the game.
KXIP's win meant CSK's first defeat of the tournament this year. Chris Gayle's imploding batting at the top of the order and Sharma's efficiency in the final over will be the biggest positives Ravi Ashwin and his men will take from this game.