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IPL 2020 | CSK vs KXIP: Faf-Watson buoyed CSK ride roughshod over KXIP to end losing streak

Brief Scores: Chennai Super Kings (Faf du Plessis 87*, Shane Watson 83*; Ravi Bishnoi 0/33) 

beat 

Kings XI Punjab 178/4 in 20 overs (KL Rahul 63, Nicholas Pooran 33; Shardul Thakur 2/39) by 10 wickets.


Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis rolled back the years to conjure a chasing masterclass as Chennai Super Kings made a mockery of Kings XI Punjab's 179-run target, fighting redemption after three consecutive drubbings in the 18th match of the Indian Premier League. Their awe-inspiring 181-run stand- the second-best opening partnership in a 10-wicket win in IPL history- steadied CSK's sinking ship in the tournament as they climb two places higher in the points table on Sunday, October 4 at Dubai. 

Faf-Watson prove old is gold

Shane Watson looked a chip off the old block tonight, glancing Sheldon Cottrell to open his account before unleashing from his repertoire those signature aerial lofts. Faf du Plessis too mauled a quadruple of boundaries in Chris Jordan's introductory over to propel CSK to their highest score of 60 for zero in mandatory field restrictions. Skipper Rahul blew a gasket, not just because of the penalizing his troops were being subjected to but also the fact that their groundwork levels dipped on a couple of occasions.

Such was the harmony in operation from CSK's stalwarts that they aggregated their respective half-centuries within the same over. Despite anything and everything blazing from the sweet spot, the Faf-Watson duo abstained from overindulgence and showed tremendous composure to guide CSK home without breaking a sweat.

KXIP fine-tune their squad balance

KXIP eventually ran out of patience with liability Karun Nair and plugged the middle-order loophole by bringing in the raw firepower of Mandeep Singh. Harpreet Singh Brar and Chris Jordan were other deputies employed to resolve the chinks in their bowling armour.

Punjab lay a rigid foundation

The current orange-cap holder, KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal bolted along with their modus operandi of axing unnecessary glamour and relying on textbook cricketing shots. Six mellow boundaries embellished the PowerPlay jamboree as KXIP tucked a healthy 46 for no loss on the scoreboard. A shrewd bowling change from talisman MS Dhoni reaped huge dividends as Piyush Chawla beguiled Agarwal into a frail swipe very first delivery. Singh assumed his designated role of an enabler to perfection during his stroke-filled 27 before nailing Ravindra Jadeja's half-volley straight down cover's throat.

Chennai stage mini-recovery after Pooran-Rahul flutter

Having played second fiddle till Mayank and Singh dominated proceedings, Rahul switched gears within a jiffy, taking apart Shardul Thakur for 16 to notch his second fifty of the season. He found an able ally in Nicholas Pooran, who's six-studded 33 jerked KXIP into pole position.

Just when it seemed like the glove-punching marauders would bully CSK out of the contest, Thakur wrestled back the advantage with two consecutive scalps. While Pooran skewed a knuckleball to be caught adeptly by Jadeja at deep square leg, Rahul feathered behind in an approach to steer a wide yorker. For all of their agricultural heaves and reverse paddle scoops, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Glenn Maxwell struggled to apply the finishing touches as KXIP left a dozen or more runs on the plate. Not that it would have mattered a great deal anyway. 

What's next in store?

Having reverted to type after three soul-crushing defeats, Chennai Super Kings will aspire to carry the momentum in their next battle against Kolkata Knight Riders on Wednesday, October 7. Now languishing on the rock bottom of the points table, Kings XI Punjab have repeatedly been let down by their mediocre bowling unit. They would do well to pluck a leaf out of virtuoso Sunrisers Hyderabad's book, whom they lock horns with on Thursday, October 8 in Dubai.

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IPL 2020 | CSK vs KXIP: What experts said as Super Kings thrash Kings XI mercilessly to announce their comeback

For the first time in the entire Indian Premier League season 2020, Chennai Super Kings looked like the team that people have known over the years. The bowling was brilliant as they restricted a batting heavy Kings XI Punjab to just 178 on a batting wicket in Dubai. Then came the icing on the cake as the opening duo of Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis mounted an unbeaten partnership of 181 runs to give the Punjab team the biggest thrashing of a 10 wicket loss. This 181 run stand between the two veterans is also the second-highest partnership in a successful chase in the IPL, falling behind Gautam Gambhir and Chris Lynn by just 3 runs. The Kings had started the game in a familiar fashion as their openers KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal scored 61 off 8 overs and just as they were thinking to accelerate, Agarwal was dismissed by a Pixyish Chawala flight. From there on, Rahul tired to build momentum with Nicholas Pooran. But losing two quick wickets that too of both the set batsmen in the 18th over meant that they failed to fully accelerate and ended up at 178, which could have easily been more than 190. Shardul Thakur did the damage by picking up both the wickets. Captains’ viewpoints: Reacting to the game, MS Dhoni the winning captain after three losses on a trot looked cheerful in the post-match presentation and said that the team was finally able to execute the plans after all. “Did the small things right and believed in the process. [We] were looking for the kind of start today. That's where experience counts. It's not about being more aggressive,” he said. Lauding his batsmen in the experienced duo of Watson and du Plessis, Dhoni said, “Watson was looking good in the nets. But what you want is to replicate that. It was just a matter of time that he gets going. Faf is like a sheet anchor for us. He can always confuse the bowlers with shots like the lap shot.” “They complement each other well,” he added. The 39-year-old then chose to show his respect t6owards his long-time ally and coach Stephen Fleming saying that he doesn’t get the credit he fully deserves. “Fleming doesn't get the kind of recognition he should. The good thing between us is that we decide each and everything between us. It's not like we don't have debates over selections. But it stays between us.” Skipper also praised the bowlers for standing up to the task and bowling in the right channels to execute the plans. “Felt the bowlers did a very good job. Felt we bowled according to what our plan was. Momentum with the right kind of shots - I felt Watto and Faf backed themselves to play the shots they're known for. It was very good to watch them out there.” On the other hand, KL Rahul looked frustrated after three losses on a trot. “It's hard being on the losing side for so many games on the trot. We need to come back harder and better,” he said. The Karnataka batsman accepted the mistakes of his team saying that they are going wrong at executing their task. “There's no rocket science where we are going wrong, it's the execution,” he said. “When we started batting, the wicket did stop a bit and when the spinners came in there was some grip and turn,” Rahul further explained as to why his team was unable to have the fireworks they are known for in batting. Rahul also reasoned saying that getting the wickets of the openers was important. “If we don't get wickets of the class of Watson and du Plessis, we are in trouble. It's a bit hard to attack as a captain when they are going at 10 runs an over in the powerplay,” said the 28-year-old. “They are all professional players, so we can expect them to come back better. We need to keep training harder, practicing, and try to win the key moments in the game. Hopefully, we'll be able to bounce back,” Rahul concluded with a hope to turn around the team’s fortunes in the upcoming games. Expert Opinion: Experts were divided on the opinion as to whether it was the brilliance of CSK or the fact that KXIP lack the talent to defend totals. Expressing his views upon the emphatic Chennai win, Veteran Sports Journalist Joy Bhattacharjya called all those who wrote Chennai off after the initial games as 'novice' claiming that CSK downfall reports were nothing but a mere exaggeration. Harsha Bhogle, one of the most known faces in the cricket broadcast industry said that it isn't the end of the road for the losing team Kings XI and was hopeful that with the kind of resources they have, they can bounce back. Senior Journalist Gaurav Kalra was once again at his 'witty' best and called the victory of CSK as the best tactics applied by the team so far, saying that as openers would lessen the burden on the team, it would hardly matter who was batting at which order. Senior TV journalist, Vikrant Gupta pointed out why it was the best time for both CSK and Watson to finally return to form. Joy Bhattacharjya also raised an important question saying that while Leggies are allowed to bowl with such weird runups (pointing to Ravi Bishnoi), how would the batsman fare while batting it. To this, Lisa Sthalekar, former Australian women's team member assured him by replying to his Tweet that batsmen will adapt and find a solution as they have always done.