Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 2 (ANI): Punjab Kings stand-in skipper Sam Curran revealed the reason behind his decision to hand the ball to Rahul Chahar to bowl the 19th over against Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
PBKS resorted to a different approach to neutralize the ever-present threat of CSK power hitters after winning the toss.
CSK came out to bat and Proteas quick Kagiso Rabada was introduced in the powerplay while the spin duo of Harpreet Brar and Rahul Chahar were held back for the middle and death overs.
Brar picked up Ajinkya Rahane and Shivam Dube in the same over, and Chahar proved to be economical and effective on Chepauk’s surface.
The strategy did wonders for PBKS, but a few eyebrows were raised in the stadium when Chahar came in to bowl the penultimate over.
While facing the likes of Dhoni and Moeen Ali, Chahar conceded three runs and bagged the English all-rounder’s wicket which proved to be a turning point in the grand scheme of things. Chahar finished the game with figures of 2/16 in his four-over spell.
While talking about gambling on Chahar to bowl the 19th over, Curran said in the post-match presentation, “Chahar came back and was the best bowler in the 260 game, and he’s bowling with great confidence. He stepped up when I asked him to bowl against MSD in the 19th over. The pace bowlers were going for a bit in the end, and I wanted to try something different. Asked Rilee what he reckoned and took that gamble with spin. In this game where everyone has been going for runs, you need to take such gambles. Sometimes they work, sometimes they don’t.”
“I think when you come to Chennai, you know how hot it is and dew is going to settle in. Today we wanted to try something different by trying Rabada in the powerplay. We wanted to use our spinners later on, so took a punt on trying him within the powerplay,” he added.
As PBKS engineered their way to a second-consecutive win in the ongoing season and raised hopes of an unprecedented comeback of a spot in IPL playoffs, Curran expressed the need to build on the confidence that they have gained with their recent success.
“We come against the same opposition so we have one up on them. It is a new game, new conditions but this win will give us a lot of confidence. I think our bowlers were superb, the spinners and Jonny striking them well, even the way we paced that chase, it was brilliant. Need to build on that confidence,” Curran concluded.
Coming to the match, the vibrant yellow wave in the stands of Chepauk was reduced to silence after PBKS effortlessly chased down 163 with more than two overs to spare.
Sam Curran’s decision to put CSK to bat turned out to be the ideal one as the dew factor kicked in to become a hindrance for CSK bowlers in the second half of the match.
Ruturaj Gaikwad led from the front and scored 62 off 48 deliveries and MS Dhoni provided the finishing touches at the death to power CSK to an unlikely 162/7.
In reply, PBKS batters hardly broke a sweat while chasing 163. Jonny Bairstow and Rilee Rossouw forged a 64-run stand to completely shift the momentum in their favour.
Curran and Shashank Singh applied the finishing touches to seal a 7-wicket win for PBKS. (ANI)
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