"CSK are putting a lot of pressure on Mitchell Santner by sending him at No. 3" - Imran Tahir
Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) experiment of promoting Mitchell Santner up the order backfired yet again. Batting at No. 3, the left-hander managed just nine runs from 15 deliveries in their IPL 2022 match against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Monday, April 25.
Former CSK spinner Imran Tahir suggested that the IPL team has been putting pressure on Santner by asking him to bat at that position. He stated that the Kiwi bowling all-rounder is better suited lower down.
Speaking on ESPNcricinfo after the match, he said:
"CSK had a slow start and they also lost a couple of wickets upfront. I think CSK are putting a lot of pressure on Mitchell Santner by sending him at No. 3. He is more comfortable batting down the order and has proven that in the past seasons. They are asking too much from a guy who's always batted down the order."
On the same show, Daniel Vettori pointed out that the Super Kings think tank wanted to give Santner one more opportunity at No. 3. While the ploy hasn't yielded positive results, he believes that the thinking was right.
He stated:
"I think CSK were looking at the left-right combination. He did that in the last game and maybe they wanted to give him one more chance. It was a case of let's give him another go. It often doesn't look great when it doesn't work, but I think the rationale was probably right."
Santner was promoted up the batting order in the team's previous clash against Mumbai Indians (MI) as well. The southpaw failed to make an impact with the bat in the encounter and was dismissed for 11 runs.
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"Ambati Rayudu put the pressure back on PBKS bowlers" - Daniel Vettori praises CSK batsman
Ambati Rayudu was the only saving grace for CSK in their clash against PBKS. The seasoned campaigner gave his side a glimmer of hope with his explosive knock of 78 off just 39 deliveries.
Vettori pointed out that Rayudu, with his counter-attacking approach, put the pressure back on the PBKS bowlers. He opined that the batter played with a clear plan and tried his best to tilt the match in his side's favor.
He added:
"It felt like PBKS were in control the whole time until Rayudu's innings. His innings was exceptional and it almost feels like it's forgotten because we started talking about MS Dhoni in the last two overs. But PBKS were in charge and Rayudu tried to take the game away from them. It felt like he had a plan. He was able to hit a lot of bad balls and executed it well. He put the pressure back on PBKS bowlers."
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Rayudu. however, didn't get much support from the rest of the Chennai batters. The side failed to chase down a total of 187 and lost the game by 11 runs.
The defending champions suffered their sixth loss of the season. They are currently languishing in the penultimate spot in the IPL standings.