IPL 2020 | Pitch was quite similar to Chennai; impressed with Gaikwad’s knock, expresses Sam Curran

Mathematically, Chennai Super Kings were still in but after Kings XI Punjab’s win against Sunrisers Hyderabad earlier on Saturday, their hopes were dashed, which meant that they were just playing for pride against RCB. In the first half after losing the toss, CSK bowlers had to bowl the right lines and lengths to restrict the in-form RCB batsmen. 

That was exactly what they did, with the pacers removing any kind of pace on the ball, in the first half, before the spinners squeezed in. In particular, English all-rounder Sam Curran was extremely impressive, picking up three wickets for just 19 runs, dismissing in-form Virat Kohli. With the bat, it was Ruturaj Gaikwad all the way, scoring a scintillating 65* off 51 deliveries, with four boundaries and three sixes. 

In the post-match presentation, Curran admitted that the pitch was similar to the one back in Chennai, with a slower pace. On the other side, he also credited Ruturaj Gaikwad for his unbeaten knock on the night. 

“To be honest we all have been impressed with him (Gaikwad). He'll get that confidence for the next few games. It's good for his confidence to get such a score against a side like RCB. The pitch was quite similar to the Chennai pitch,” said Curran in the post-match presentation. 

However, from a personal note, Curran also revealed that he has tried to bowl off-cutters, which came out well against RCB. Alongside that, he also admitted that he is developing a back of the hand slower delivery, from his brother Tom Curran, who plays for Rajasthan Royals. 

“We were trying to get a win. And what a knock it was from Ruturaj (Gaikwad). It was one of those wickets which didn't have much pace in it. So tried to bowl the off-cutters and luckily it came off. I've been looking to work on the back of the hand slower ball, something my brother (Tom Curran) bowls well,” he added.