New Delhi: Fast bowler Harshal Patel capitalised on the slow Chepauk track to great effect, helping Sunrisers Hyderabad edge out Chennai Super Kings by five wickets in a clash between the lower-ranked teams in the IPL on Friday. The result pushed CSK to the verge of elimination from the tournament.
Harshal Patel, known for his mastery of slower balls and the knuckle delivery, picked up 4 for 28 as Chennai Super Kings struggled yet again with the bat, getting bowled out for 154 in 19.5 overs.
Although the dew on the outfield was expected to help the batting side, Sunrisers Hyderabad made the chase more difficult than it needed to be, eventually reaching the target in 18.4 overs.
Ishan Kishan (44 off 34), recovering from his costly lapse in the game against Mumbai Indians, anchored the innings early on. Later, Kamindu Mendis (an unbeaten 32 off 22) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (an unbeaten 19 off 13) guided SRH home with a steady 49-run partnership. It also marked Sunrisers’ first-ever victory at this ground.
With just six points from nine matches, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s chances of making the playoffs are hanging by a thread. They must win all of their remaining five games and by convincing margins to reach 16 points, which is generally considered a safe qualification mark.
SRH have moved ahead of the Rajasthan Royals to occupy the eighth spot on the 10-team points table, while Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings continue to languish at the bottom.
As for CSK, a seventh loss in nine outings has all but dashed their playoff dreams. To stay in contention, they now need to win their remaining five matches and hope the fourth playoff spot is secured with just 14 points.
The CSK batting lineup appeared completely drained of confidence, and the absence of a unified performance from their bowlers only made matters worse.
Harshal Patel skillfully varied his pace and found solid support from captain Pat Cummins (2/21), versatile spinner Kamindu Mendis (1/26), experienced pacer Mohammed Shami (1/28), and Jaydev Unadkat (2/21). Dewald Brevis led the scoring with a quick 42 off 25 deliveries, while Deepak Hooda added a valuable 22 off 21 balls, hitting a few big shots late in the innings to help CSK cross the 150 mark.
Asked to bat first, CSK got off to a disastrous beginning, losing Shaik Rasheed on the very first ball of the innings to Mohammed Shami. The delivery, resembling a textbook Test match ball, was pitched on a good length outside off and moved away slightly, drawing an edge that was neatly taken by Abhishek Sharma at first slip.
However, youngster Ayush Mhatre (30 off 19) looked in fine form, finding the fence regularly with aggressive strokes against the likes of Shami, SRH captain Pat Cummins, and Jaydev Unadkat. Sam Curran was the next to fall, mistiming a shot off Harshal Patel and sending a top edge straight to Aniket Verma at deep midwicket.
CSK’s troubles deepened when the in-form Ayush Mhatre was dismissed in the sixth over, caught by Ishan Kishan off Pat Cummins, leaving the hosts struggling at 50 for 3 at the end of the powerplay.
In the following over, Harshal Patel dropped a straightforward chance off Zeeshan Ansari’s bowling, giving Ravindra Jadeja (21) a reprieve. Jadeja made use of the opportunity by launching a massive six over long-on. However, his innings didn’t last long, as Kamindu Mendis knocked over his stumps shortly after. At the 10-over mark, CSK stood at 76 for 4.
Then, Shivam Dube (12 off 9) and Dewald Brevis (42 off 25) looked to counterattack with aggressive strokes. Dube drove Shami beautifully for two boundaries through the covers in the 11th over, while Brevis took Mendis apart in the next, smashing him for three big sixes to keep the momentum going.
Brought into the lineup, Brevis continued his onslaught, hitting Harshal for another maximum before falling to a stunning catch by Kamindu at long-off. The collapse continued as Dube was caught by Abhishek Sharma at long-on off Jaydev Unadkat in the very next over.
MS Dhoni, featuring in his 400th T20 appearance, also failed to make an impact, cutting Harshal Patel straight to Abhishek at point. In the final phase, Deepak Hooda did his best to add some late runs, helping CSK push their total past 150.
