IPL 2024: Punjab Kings vs Chennai Super Kings Match Highlights & Player of the Match: Despite the initial setback due to the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane in the thrilling match between Punjab Kings and Chennai Super Kings in match number 53 of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2024), Chennai made a great start.
Ruturaj Gaikwad and Daryl Mitchell scored at a pace of 10 runs per over in the powerplay and laid a solid base for the middle overs. However, they delivered a double blow by dismissing Gaikwad and Shivam Dubey on consecutive balls, turning the momentum in their favour.
CSK struggled against the mesmerizing spell of Rahul Chahar, and found themselves unable to match his slick bowling. Ravindra Jadeja’s aggressive knock of 43 off 26 balls emerged as a ray of hope in CSK’s innings, helping them reach a competitive total of 167.
In reply, PBKS suffered an early blow losing Jonny Bairstow and Riley Rousseau in the second over, thanks to some quick bowling from Deshpande, who showed his prowess with the new ball.
Jadeja’s arrival further compounded PBKS’s troubles as the left-arm spinner took three crucial wickets for just 20 runs in his four overs, dashing any hopes of a PBKS comeback.
Despite a valiant effort from their middle-order, PBKS kept losing wickets at regular intervals and eventually fell behind by 8 runs in their first encounter in Dharamshala. The match witnessed exciting cricket, in which both the teams gave their all, but in the end CSK emerged victorious.
Punjab Kings Captain Sam Curran: ” Thought we bowled well. Rahul Chahar and Harshal bowled amazingly. Was a good start to the game but was not meant to be. The wicket was probably slower than we thought, we expected a little more pace and bounce. It remained the same later on as well. Need to move on and stay headstrong..”
Chennai Super Kings Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad: “Losing the toss doesn’t usually bother me much, especially after a win. Everyone seems to think it’s good to lose the toss, but honestly, it matters to me. We initially thought we could push for a higher score like 180-200 given the start we had, but consecutive wickets fell, and we adjusted our target to 160-170, which felt slightly short.
However, given how the pitch played later, it seemed just about par.Talking about Simarjeet’s performance, he’s really picked up pace, hitting around 150s in pre-season, though he didn’t get many chances earlier with Deepak, Shardul, Tushar, Pathirana, and Fizz around. It’s great that he got to play today. We considered an impact batter but opted for a bowler, thinking a good spell might secure more for us than a few quick runs.Overall, it’s a huge relief to win, especially with all the injuries we’ve had. This morning, we weren’t even sure who would play, so I’m really happy with how things turned out.”
IPL 2024: Player of the Match Ravindra Jadeja
“The pitch for today’s game was slow, which was pretty much anticipated due to the heat affecting it during this day game. In terms of our batting, we started strong in the powerplay but struggled to maintain momentum due to a lack of partnerships in the middle overs. I was aiming to establish a solid partnership to set up for a strong finish. As for our bowling, our pacers delivered upfront during the powerplay, with Tushar snagging two crucial wickets, and then Mitch and I managed to contain the opposition in the middle overs.
Although the pitch appeared flat initially, it became challenging to play as the ball aged and didn’t come onto the bat as expected. This being a new venue, it was tricky to predict the amount of turn or stoppage. We felt we were short by about 15-20 runs, but thankfully, our disciplined bowling in the powerplay and middle overs kept us in the game. My role as a batter is to anchor and build innings, looking to accelerate towards the end. However, when we lose early wickets, it’s challenging to regain momentum, which is critical in matches that we eventually win.”
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