IPL 2019 | Batting needs to get better, says MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni has stated that the Chennai Super Kings need to bat better, referring to the side’s poor batting performance in the first qualifier against Mumbai Indians on Tuesday. CSK had won the crucial toss and opted to bat first but things did not go their way as they could only manage 131 runs.
Chennai Super Kings had a very poor start against Mumbai Indians as they lost their top three within the powerplay overs itself. Faf du Plessis had sliced Rahul Chahar’s leg break straight into the hands of the backward point fielder in the third over, followed by Suresh Raina’s rash shot as he handed an easy catch to the bowler Jayant Yadav. Next was Shane Watson who played a pull against the spin and ended up losing his wicket to Krunal Pandya. Murali Vijay played a run-a-ball knock of 26 before being dismissed by Rahul Chahar. The spinners had wreaked havoc but the pacers also tied the batsman down with their economical bowling. Skipper MS Dhoni, who had scored 37 off 29 deliveries, smashed two consecutive sixes off Lasith Malinga in the 19th over but failed to hit a six in Jasprit Bumrah’s last over. Ambati Rayudu scored 42 off 37 balls but was unable to change the gears. The skipper felt that the batting let them down today.
“Somebody has to lose, things really didn't go our way, especially batting. At home, we had to assess the conditions quickly, we have played six to seven games on this pitch and should have read the pitch better, that's the home advantage. We needed to know how the pitch behaves, would it be tacky? Is the ball coming on or not, those were the things we didn't do well, I think the batting needs to get better,” he said at the post-match presentation ceremony, reported Cricbuzz.
“These are the best batsmen we have got, it looks like we are are batting well, but at times, but in different games, they pull off shots that shouldn't be played. These are the players who we have banked on, they have the experience and they should know to assess the conditions better, hopefully, we will do well in the next game,” he added.
CSK bowlers also started in a similar fashion as they sent both the MI openers Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock for single-digit scores within four overs. However, Murali Vijay dropped Suryakumar Yadav’s catch in the fifth over when he was batting on three. That made all the difference as Yadav went on to score an unbeaten 71 in a low-scoring encounter. Ishan Kishan and Krunal Pandya’s consecutive wickets in the 14th over did not mean much as only 31 runs were required of six overs. The skipper felt that the bowlers were unlucky.
“I think we were a bit unlucky at times (talking about bowling), some balls dropped right in the middle, a few catches weren't taken. We perhaps had to bowl slightly away from the batsmen, could have slowed down the pace and bowl with more variations. But we didn't have runs on the board, so every boundary conceded in a 130 defence was bad,” explained the 37-year-old.
The three-time champions will play the second qualifier on May 10 against the winner of the eliminator match. Dhoni was relieved that they finished among the top two to get another chance.
“It isn't good to lose games at such times, but it is good that we finished in the top-two. Rather than going over the wicket (straight to the finals), we now need to go round the wicket (to qualifier 2), that means the journey takes a longer time. But luckily, we finished in the top-two and that gives us a second chance,” he signed off.
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