Backed by players with immense experience in playing big matches, the Chennai Super Kings team will start as a strong contender for victory against Delhi Capitals in the first qualifier of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday. Delhi team topped the league with 20 points and that shows the consistency in their performance. Despite the tournament being postponed midway due to Kovid-19, Delhi maintained its consistency.
Chennai has made it to the playoffs again after missing out last year. Out of the 12 IPLs he has participated in, his team has reached the playoffs 11 times. However, losing three matches in a row, in the end, would have been an exasperation for their captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Delhi also had to lose their last match. Kona Bharat of Royal Challengers Bangalore gave a shock to Delhi in this match by hitting a six off the last ball. This did not affect his condition but his confidence must have been shaken.
Chennai has made it to the final eight times so far, out of which it has been the champion three times. This shows that the team has the ability to perform at its best in times of need.
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Dhonis principle is clear, trust those who have been tried, those who have experience and that is why his team has players like Ravindra Jadeja, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Dwayne Bravo, and Faf du Plessis. Apart from these, there are players of the international level like Josh Hazlewood and Moeen Ali and former India captain Dhoni knows the kind of combination he wants.
Dhoni knows that he has not been in good form for a long time. He scored only 96 runs in 14 matches. IPL legend Suresh Raina too could manage only 160 runs in 12 matches but he has the likes of Gaikwad (533 runs) and du Plessis (546 runs) who have often given the team solid starts. Jadeja (227) has been showing his batting prowess in the last overs.
Similarly, Shardul Thakur (18 wickets in 14 matches) has been doing wonders in bowling but Dwayne Bravo (12 wickets) is always ready to make a useful contribution. Hazlewood could not find form but Dhoni kept his faith in him.
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Delhi Capitals may have won 10 matches on the league stage but their batting did not show that confidence. Prithvi Shaw (401 runs) and Shikhar Dhawan (544 runs) played some good innings but their batsmen failed to dominate the UAE stage. Captain Rishabh Pant (362 runs) was able to perform well in pieces. Due to the injury of Marcus Stoinis, the balance of his team was disturbed. Shimron Hetmyer played a good role in the death overs but no other batsman could do that.
Delhis strong side is its bowling. Avesh Khan (22 wickets), Axar Patel (15 wickets), Kagiso Rabada (13 wickets), and Anrich Norkhia (nine wickets) have played their roles very well so far.
In the end, losing three matches in a row must have been an exasperation for their captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Delhi also had to lose their last match. Srikar Bharat of Royal Challengers Bangalore shocked Delhi in this match by hitting a six off the last ball. This did not affect his condition but his confidence must have been shaken.
Chennai has made it to the final eight times so far, out of which it has been the champion three times. This shows that the team has the ability to perform at its best in times of need. Chennai has been relying on its age-old experienced players and doesnt change its team too much. Dhonis principle is clear, trust those who have been tried, those who have experience and that is why his team has players like Ravindra Jadeja, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Dwayne Bravo, and Faf du Plessis. Apart from these, there are players of the international level like Josh Hazlewood and Moeen Ali, and former India captain Dhoni knows the kind of combination he wants.
Faf du Plessis is an expert in playing long innings. However, here the weak link has been seen in the opening pair of Chennai and the bowlers of Delhi would like to hit the weak wall first to break into the fort of Chennai. The most important weapons for this will be R Ashwin and Kagiso Rabada. The captain can open the bowling with these two. Both have run Faf three times each.
With the increasing tournament, the pitch here has slowed down and the batsmen have faced some difficulty in scoring runs. However, after spending some time on the league pitch, the batsmen can collect the desired runs. The role of dew can also be seen in the second innings, so the team winning the toss would prefer to bat here. The heat in Dubai at the start of IPL has brought some relief to the players. Clouds are also visible in the sky, although there is no possibility of rain. The maximum temperature is likely to go up to 36 degrees.
Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (c), Ripple Patel, Shimron Hetmyer, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Avesh Khan, Anrich Nortje
Ruturaj Gaikwad, Faf du Plessis, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni (c), Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Thakur, Josh Hazlewood
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