A 129-run opening stand between Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis helped Chennai Super Kings (CSK) beat SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) by seven wickets in an Indian Premier League contest at the Arun Jaitley Stadium right here on Wednesday.
Gaikwad made 75 off 44 balls (12×4) whereas du Plessis scored 56 off 38 balls (6×4, 1×6) as CSK chased down 171/3 put up by SRH with 9 balls to spare.
With this win, CSK return to the top of the points table.
Five wins in a row and @ChennaiIPL sit atop the table. #SRH are at No. 8. https://t.co/dvbR7X1Kzc #VIVOIPL #CSKvSRH pic.twitter.com/azvYnZOL8E
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 28, 2021
SRH struggled to get wickets, as their tempo trio of Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed and Siddarth Kaul could not get any help from the placid pitch.
The three conceded 92 runs in 11.3 overs as the CSK openers made merry.
Leg-spinner Rashid Khan took 3/36 in his 4 overs however he was removed from miserly on a pitch that helped strokeplay.
CSK raced to 50 with out loss in the powerplay stage.
Both Gaikwad and du Plessis have had profitable opening partnerships in the previous few matches. They added 115 in the recreation in opposition to Kolkata Knight Riders, 74 in opposition to the Royal Challengers Bangalore and 129 in opposition to SRH on Wednesday.
By the time each had been dismissed by Rashid, CSK had been already on target for a win.
Earlier, Kane Williamson’s 10-ball 26 at the back-end of the SRH innings helped his facet rating 58 runs in the final 5 overs to attain a combating whole of 171/3 in 20 overs.
Williamson arrived at the crease with SRH needing a fillip as CSK’s fielding and tight bowling had restricted the Hyderabad franchise.
After opener Jonny Bairstow was dismissed early, skipper David Warner and No. 3 Manish Pandey added 106 runs for the second wicket in 13.5 overs. While there was no loss of wicket, Warner struggled to get his photographs going and could not enhance the run fee. He fell for a 55-ball 57, which included two sixes and three fours.
Pandey, who was included in the facet after being benched in the earlier recreation, appeared extra fluent as he hammered his method to a 46-ball 61 (5×4, 1×6).
However, it was Williamson who turned it on for SRH. The New Zealand captain, who walked in to bat at No. 4, took 19 runs (20 general) off Shardul Thakur’s remaining over, the innings’ nineteenth.
Williamson hit one six and 4 fours throughout his innings, whereas Kedar Jadhav chipped in with 12 off 4 balls.
For CSK, Lungi Ngidi took 2/35 whereas Sam Curran scalped 1/30.
Brief scores: SunRisers Hyderabad 171/3 in 20 overs (M Pandey 61, D Warner 57, Okay Williamson 26 not out, L Ngidi 2/35, S Curran 1/30) vs Chennai Super Kings 173/3 in 18.3 overs (R Gaikwad 75, F du Plessis 56, R Khan 3/36).
