NEW DELHI: Tushar Deshpande's exceptional bowling in the powerplay proved to be a game-changer for the Chennai Super Kings in their 78-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad. Captain
Ruturaj Gaikwad
recognized that the pacer's performance infused the team with the momentum they had been lacking this season.
Deshpande's spirited effort yielded figures of 4/27 in three overs, with three of those wickets coming during the powerplay, which dismantled the formidable SRH batting lineup spearheaded by Travis Head.
"One area where we lost momentum in a few games was not getting wickets in the powerplay. It is the only way we can put the opposition on the back foot. Deshpande bowled really well. His hard work is paying off," said CSK skipper Gaikwad, who scored 98 off 54 deliveries to give his team a 200-plus total to defend.
With the dew giving spinners a torrid time, the onus was on Ravindra Jadeja to keep his line and length intact, and the wily spinner bowled a measly spell, giving away just 22 runs in his four overs while also taking a wicket.
"Special mention to Jaddu as well. In these wet conditions, four overs 20-25 runs, for me that was a match-turning spell.
"I'm not very vocal. Everyone is very experienced in the dressing room and you can't just go up to seniors and tell them what to do. So I just take a back seat," said Gaikwad following the win, which propelled CSK to third position on the points table.
Gaikwad added that at no point in time was he thinking about a century, saying that he was "upset" with himself for missing a few big shots.
"I was never even thinking about the hundred. I was just trying to make sure we get to 220 or whatever extra runs possible. Even in the last game I wasn't thinking about the hundred.
"I was upset I missed a few shots. At the innings break I thought it would cost us. But in the end it worked out. Last game we made some errors, some loose balls here and there, not really up to the mark in the field. Today we came up with plans, stuck to them and we were excellent in the field."
He said that with the 'impact sub' rule, no score is safe and the more a team scores the better it is.
"With the impact rule you never know the par score, you always want an extra 10-20 runs."
English (US) ·