Sportsnob – Critics Corner

While one might say the Super Kings have always been slow starters, that things will come together in the fullness of time, that Yes, we will most definitely reach the semi-finals, I believe the thing that says it all last night was the fact that a stray dog spent more time on the pitch than all the CSK batsmen combined.

Admittedly, the ground staff were more than a little lax – after the first few abortive attempts to chase it off the field, they sort of adopted an air of resignation. Even the fielders ignored it completely, which is a shame, because if they’d put their foot down and waited for it to leave, Chennai might have earned a creditable draw against the current IPL champions (thanks to the match being abandoned, of course).

Anyway, I digress. There were very few positives to take from last night’s performance at the M A Chidambaram stadium. Ashwin Ravichandran bowled fairly well, and the Kings’ fielding was more than adequate, as evinced by the three run outs they effected. Two things puzzled me – firstly, why on earth did Dhoni give Sudeep Tyagi the final over of the Chargers’ innings? It was clear to all and sundry that he wasn’t hitting his straps and was low on confidence. Which brings me to the second bewilderer – why didn’t Raina get a bowl last night?

Chennai’s batting was quite possibly a tribute to Brett Lee’s band – Six and Out seemed to be the order of the day. Every time a batsman hit a six, he would end up getting out within the space of 4 deliveries. Some of the shot selection – Raina’s and Badri’s in particular – was abysmal. Chaminda Vaas bowled brilliantly – castling Murali, accepting Raina’s gift, and then drawing a false shot from Hayden.

Here’s hoping things change tomorrow night against a very overhyped Kolkata outfit.

Picture Courtesy: The Hindu