By India Blooms News Service May 01, 2023
Chennai/UNI: Punjab Kings came up with a combined team effort to clinch a last ball thriller against home favourites and 4-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK), winning by four wickets in the IPL match at the M.A.Chidambaram Stadium here tonight.
Replying to CSKs 200 for four, PBKS started off strongly, wobbled in the middle overs and needed nine runs in the last over.
Sling bowler Pathirana tried his heart out in the last over, mixed up his deliveries and brought down the margin to three runs off the last ball.
However, Sikandar Raza took PBKS past the finishing line pulling a slower ball to the square leg fence, and ran three to complete a sensational win, in front of a packed stadium.
PBKS started promisingly in the chase, with impact player Prabhsimran Singh (for pacer Kasigo Rabada) top scored with 24-ball 42 (4x4, 2x6) and added 50 runs in just 4.2 overs for the opening wicket, before they lost two wickets to be at 94 for three in 10.2 overs.
However, Liam Livingstone and Sam Curran lifted the hopes with some big hitting adding 47 runs in 6.3 overs for the fourth wicket, reviving the hopes of PBKS, before two wickets led to some tense moments.
However, Sikandar Raza ensured that the PBKS crossed the finishing line ending up at 201 for six.
On a wicket, which was gripping for the spinners, CSK had fallen about 10 runs short, despite spinner Ravindra Jadeja bringing the team back into contest with two wickets to finish with 2 for 32 in 4 overs.
Though pacer Tushar Deshpande picked up three wickets, he just failed to deliver in the death, as he conceded 13 runs in the 19th over, which turned out to be crucial.
Earlier, riding on opener and man of the match Devon Conways unbeaten 92 and nice little cameos by other opener Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shivam Dube carried CSK to 200 for 4, with skipper MS Dhoni finishing in style with two successive sixers of the last two balls, despite they failed to accelerate in the middle overs.