RCB vs CSK IPL 2018 Match Report: Dhoni (70*) and Rayudu (82) help Chennai chase down 205 in a thrilling encounter

Chennai Super Kings CSK IPL 2018

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) defeated the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by five wickets with two balls to spare in match 24 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Wednesday. With their third win in a row, Chennai move to the top of the points table as Bangalore remain in the bottom half at sixth position.

Chasing a massive total of 205, Chennai got off to a bad start losing three important wickets in the opening six overs. Once again it was Ambati Rayudu who came to his teams rescue with another stellar performance. Opening the innings, he stayed in the center right until the 17^th over adding 82 runs in just 53 balls before being run out. Bravo then walked out to assist captain cool MS Dhoni who sealed the victory in trademark fashion, with a huge six in the last over. Dhoni ended the innings with an unbeaten 70 off just 34 balls in a Man of the Match performance for Chennai.

The Bangalore bowling unit, which started so well early in the innings, was unable to see out the death overs as they let Chennai claw their way back into the game. Yuzvendra Chahal and Umesh Yadav were impressive as they combined well early on to restrict Chennai to 74-4 in the opening nine overs.

Earlier in the innings, RCB who were put in to bat by Dhoni, got off to a great start courtesy another whirlwind knock by AB de Villiers who scored 68 off just 30 deliveries. Quinton de Kock (53 off 37) and Mandeep Singh (32 off 17) were the other high scorers who helped RCB post a competitive 205 runs in their 20 overs.

Captain Virat Kohli will be worried by his team’s inability to defend such a big total despite such a promising start to the innings.

Catch all the highlights from the exciting game here

Turning point

The turning point of the game came in the 19^th over when Chennai needed 30 to win from the last 12 deliveries. Mohammad Siraj who bowled the first four balls brilliantly without conceding a single boundary, pitched a low full toss to Dhoni who sliced it for a SIX over the off side. This seemed to greatly unsettle the bowler who then went on to bowl three wides before conceding a double on the last delivery which left Chennai needing just 16 from the last six balls.

Best Dismissal

The best dismissal of the game was in the ninth over, when Yuzvendra Chahal sent his last delivery of the over floating down the off side. Jadeja who shaped up to cut the ball did not account for the big turn the leggie was able to draw from the surface and was caught off balance as the ball cut in sharply and made its way between bat and body to go crashing into the stumps.

Batsman of the Match

In a game strewn with dominating batting displays across both innings, the pick of the night would undoubtedly be the cool innings played by MS Dhoni to guide his team to victory. Coming in at 74-4 in the ninth over, Captain cool set up a 101 run partnership with Rayudu and stayed on till the end to seal the victory with a massive six, as we’ve so often seen him do in his career.

Bowler of the Match

Yuzvendra Chahal who ended the night with figures of 2/26 at an economy rate of 6.50 is our pick for bowler of the night. He picked up the wickets of both Jadeja and Billings and kept a lid on the scoring rate all through his spell. The only other bowler who performed well for Bangalore was Umesh Yadav who picked up one wicket while conceding 23 runs in his four over spell.

Captain’s views

MS Dhoni (CSK captain), “I thought it was a difficult chase when I saw AB batting to see them over 200, I thought it was 15-20 beyond par. We also lost some key batsmen early but it's a small ground, the ball travels a lot here, there was some dew, not a lot. Overall, it went according to the script, not according to how we would have thought but went well. This was a slightly slowish wicket, AB's innings was very special, it seemed as if he took them at a really good pace, especially against good quality spinners. Credit goes to the spinners and it's good to be on the winning side, everyone is chipping in, we're chasing totals and Thakur is bowling well, he was under the pump earlier. What's important in a chase is to know which bowler has how many left and who the captain will bowl when and you play accordingly. You will win some, you'll lose some but the job of the finisher is to finish the job and help others, sharing the experience with others, all those things really matter because I may not batting tomorrow.”

Virat Kohli (RCB captain), “The way we bowled was just not acceptable, giving that many runs in the end was criminal. It is something we need to look at and address going forward. If we can't defend 200 then it's a problem after 72 for 4 when the lower middle order does that to you. We have to back the guys and have enough confidence in them and they need to be clear in their head to execute things. The pitch played really well, spin played a massive factor. Some quality batting with both sides getting 200. Rayudu is not young, he's been around for 15 years now. He's a quality player and he's done well for India. You never know who gets a chance somehere and I'm happy for him. Dhoni is looking in really good touch, he's hitting the ball really well this IPL but not great to see it against us.”

What’s next

The Chennai Super Kings next have a home fixture against a struggling Mumbai Indians side on Saturday. Royal Challengers stay at home and will play hosts to the Kolkata Knight Riders who will come calling on Sunday.

Points table

With this victory CSK moved to the top of the IPL with their fifth win of the campaign. RCB remain in the bottom half with just four points from their six games. Check out the updated points table here.