Defending champions Chennai Super Kings, who lost four games on a trot, bounced back to win their fifth match by 23 runs against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. With that win, the Ravindra Jadeja-led side is finally off the mark in IPL 2022.
CSK showed a lot of intent from the start of the game. They put up a massive first innings total of 216 on the board with the help of opener Robin Uthappa and all-rounder Shivam Dube. Uthappa scored 88 off 50 that was laced with four boundaries and nine maximums. Dube, on the other hand, remained unbeaten on 95 off just 46. His knock came at a strike rate of 206.52.
Mukesh Choudhary was the most expensive bowler for RCB – he was hit for 40 runs in three overs. Chris Jordan and Dwayne Bravo were also expensive with an economy rate of 10.
Chasing a mammoth 217 to win, RCB had the worst start possible, with their top three – Faf du Plessis, Anuj Rawat and Virat Kohli scoring only 21 runs combined. Once again, it was Shahbaz Ahmed and Dinesh Karthik who did most of the resurrection work for RCB. Ahmed scored 41 off 27, while Karthik was a lot more impactful with a 14-ball 34. However, eventually RCB could manage only 193 in 20 overs.
"Previous four games, we couldn't cross the line. But as a team, we came good. As a captain, I am still picking brains of the senior players. Mahi bhai is there, I always go to him and discuss.
"Moulding into a new role, it'll take time to get things going. I am still learning and trying to get better with each game,” CSK captain Ravindra Jadeja said after the win.
Image credit: IPL
