Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will play the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at Chepauk in the four-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions’ first home game of the ongoing season on Monday. CSK are coming into this game on the back of a five-wicket defeat to defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) at Ahmedabad on the opening day of the season on Friday.
Ruturaj Gaikwad started off the campaign on a terrific note, hitting 92 off 50 deliveries to take CSK to 177 at the end of 20 overs. The side looked to set mount an even bigger target for the Hardik Pandya-led side but the middle-order comprising Ambati Rayudu and Shivam Dube failed to accelerate towards the second half of the innings.
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A late flourish from MS Dhoni took Chennai to a modest target but their arguably insipid bowling attack failed to defend it as the Titans cruised their way to the target courtesy a half-century by Shubman Gill (62) and a late cameo by Rashid Khan (10* off 3 deliveries).
On the other hand, Lucknow rounded off a convincing 50-run victory against the Delhi Capitals at the national capital on Saaturday as Kyle Mayers (73) propelled them to a challenging score of 193 and Mark Wood’s five-wicket haul helped them restrict the opposition to only 143 at the end of 20 overs.
Predicted Playing XI:
CSK: Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Mitchell Santner, Deepak Chahar, Rajvardhan Hangargekar.
Impact Player: Prashant Solanki
LSG: KL Rahul (c), Kyle Mayers, Deepak Hooda, Krunal Pandya, Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Ayush Badoni, Avesh Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Jaydev Unadkat, Mark Wood.
Impact Player: Krishnappa Gowtham
Key Player To Watch Out
Ravindra Jadeja (CSK)
Ravindra Jadeja (Image: BCCI/IPL)
With the action shifting to Chepauk, Ravindra Jadeja will swing back into focus on Monday as his left-arm spin will be critical for Chennai to plug the flow of runs and pick some crucial wickets in the middle-overs. CSK failed to maximise the start provided by Gaikwad in the previous game and this could result in Jadeja being promoted higher up the order to get his eye in and then deliver the final flourish towards the backend of the innings.
Kyle Mayers (LSG)
Kyle Mayers stunned one and all with his incredible hitting prowess against Delhi and he will get another opportunity to do so against a Chennai attack comprising two left-arm spinners in Jadeja and Mitchell Santner. Dhoni might bring in Moeen Ali early on to neutralise Mayer’s impact but the Caribbean opener showed on Saturday that he can very well bide his time early on and then unleash his attacking instincts even after the powerplay overs.
Pitch Report
The average first innings batting score in six T20Is in Chepauk is 150 runs. Chennai’s reliance on their spin unit suggests that the curators might dish out a slow turner that can help the home team play the game to their strengths.
Where to Watch LIVE
The match will start at 7:30 PM IST on Monday and it will be telecast live on the Star Sports network. Online viewers can also tune into the action via the Jio Cinema app.
(Edited by : Prakhar Sachdeo)
