#IPL2016
#Qualifier1
#RCB vs #GL
Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru
What a game!!
Roller coaster fortunes - one side on top for a while, the other gets on top for a while, then the first one and so on.... The game twisted and turned dramatically to give us our first #Finalist at #IPL2016.
Playing at home and in serious form, #RCB were firm favorites in this match although #GLions were ahead of them in the points table. Their weakness, bowling, is coming full circle and delivering on the back of some extraordinary batting performances from their top order.
#ViratKohli won the toss and expectedly put the #Lions into bat. Knowing very well that #Finch and #Baz #McCullum were going to come strong at them, he employed a surprise move to counter them. #Abdulla, the left arm spinner was employed in 2nd over.
Voila ... immediate results. Baz misread the flight and smashed one down #AB's throat and three balls later #Finch edged one to slips where Gayle's bucket hands sunk the ball in. In walked skipper #SureshRaina under a lot of pressure. Two overs later, Watson employed Raina's bete noire, the rising bouncer, and induced a miscued pull to #Fineleg where #Aravind took a good low catch.
9 for 3 in 4 overs.
Round 1 to RCB.
Huge advantage with all biggies back in the hut.
However, experienced heads in #DineshKarthik and #DRSmith got together to start the repair act. Smith was aggressive while Karthik circumspect. Together they added 85 runs 10 overs to balance things out. Smith was really aggressive against Watson, Chahal and Abdulla.
94 for 3 in 13.4 overs
Round 2 to GL
Parity restored.
After the customary #StrategicTimeOut, #ChrisJordan struck for RCB castling Karthik.
#Jadeja and #DRSmith didn't last long either both perishing to Watson's experience.
115 fo 6 in 16.3 overs
Round 3 to RCB
GL slumped from a good platform to survival yet again.
The final push depended on #Bravo. He was joined by #Dwivedi who played a refreshing quickfire knock to boost the GL score. He smashed two sixes off Watson before holing it out to long on. Bravo followed him rightaway but some swinging by #DhawalKulkarni ensured GL managed to garner 158 from their allotted 20 overs. Neither below nor above par. These totals make games interesting.
158 all out in 20 overs. DR Smith - lnychpin of that innings.
Advantage RCB with their long batting lineup.
Don't count the GL just yet though. They have topped the league stages and know how to handle these situations.
The sight of #Gayle and #Kohli coming out to bat can send jitters down opposition bowlers' spines.
With 159 to get, they were in no hurry to blast away.
But, #DhawalKulkarni had different ideas.
He steamed in to induce a false shot from #KillerKohli back onto his stumps for naught! The unthinkable had happened. Virat's first duck in 51 innings and what a time to get it? Qualifier1 of the IPL? He had not added anything to his season total of 919.
In his very next over, #Dhawal inflicted more damage. First he castled Gayle with a beautiful yorker on off stump and the very next ball foxed #KLRahul to edge behind to slips. 25 fo 3.
Raina smartly got #Jadeja against #Watson and was rewarded immediately. Watto smashed hit one down DR Smiths throat while in the next over, Dhawal account for #SachinBaby too.
29 for 5 in 5.3 overs.
Round 4 to GLions
RCB in complete disarray and looking down the barrel.
#AB their only hope now was joined by #StuartBinny. Binnuy swung his bat a bit to add some quick runs to get the momentum going, but was out soon after when #Jadeja trapped him leg-before right after a #StrategicTimeOut.
68 for 6 in 9.4 overs.
Round 5 to GL
All but over for RCB unless AB delivers a magical innings.
And he set out doing just that with help of #Abdulla.
With rain looming large, he choose to attack the bowling while Abdulla got his eye in.
Together they crossed, 75, 100, 125 and 150.
AB the ravage boundary hitter while Abdulla the touch master.
Raina tried every trick in the book to outsmart #AB but Dhawal's spell was already over, Jakati was disappointing while Bravo and Kumar were also taken for runs.
When Abdulla hit the winning runs, the RCB conttingent poured out on the field congratulating AB and Abdulla on their Houdini act. What looked like a dead and buried game 10 overs ago, beacame theirs. RCB had qualified for the IPL finals!
Raina looked dejected but admitted they lost to better team while Kohli looked relieved considering the horrendous position they were in.
Man of the Match: A B Devilliers
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#CSK vs #MI
#Qualifier 1
#Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
19th May 2015
A superb all round performance from Mumbai Indians ensured they qualified for the IPL - Indian Premier League final beating Chennai Super Kings by 26 runs at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Watched by a sea of blue MI fans, they batted and bowled CSK out of the game easily. Their openers put another sterling show by setting up 90 for the opening stand to lay foundation for #Pollard to play his usual cameos to end with a flourish and set a challenging 188 run target for CSK to win.
After a lucky horror decision against Dwayne Smith and accounting for Mike Hussey, Faf Du Plessis and Suresh Raina momentarily steadied the ship and looked threatening. It all ended in one dramatic and special Harbhajan Singh over. He claimed wickets of Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni off consecutive deliveries firmly turned tide in their favor.
The middle and late order batsmen tried hard but the target was beyind them.
MI will head to Kolkata for the IPL final (24th May 2015) and await winner of Qualifier 2, scheduled for 22nd May 2015 in Ranchi. CSK will now play that game against winners of the Eliminator (#RCB or #RR).
#LIVE #SCORES
MI - 187 for 6, 20 overs
CSK - 162 all out, 19 overs
Man of the Match: #Kieron #Pollard
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#CSK vs #MI
#Qualifier 1
#Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
19th May 2015
#MI slightly ahead of the game after the first strategic timeout in CSK innings.
A horror lbw decision against #DwayneSmith by umpire Illingworth in the first over, set them on the backfoot rightaway. The aging #MikeHussey was unable to push things through really fast and eventually was caught behind off #VinayKumar.
#FafduPlessis and #SureshRainia have stepped up the gas, especially Plessis to infuse life in this CSK innings.
But, Harbhajan's 11th over of the innings turned things on its head.
He had #SureshRaina caught and bowled off the second ball. Big wicket.
The bigger wicket awaited next delivery when he trapped #MSDhoni plumb in front. The celebrations from the MI team and crowd were amazing.
He almost had DwayneBravo on the last ball of the same over but he missed a simple caught and bowled chance. However, this over has put MI firmly ahead in this game and the IPL final beckons!
#LIVE #SCORE
MI - 187
CSK - 95 for 4 in 12 overs
Game ON>>>
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#CSK vs #MI
#Qualifier 1
#Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
19th May 2015
A stunning 17 ball 41 by #KieronPollard has helped #MI set a formidable target of 188 against #CSK. After 17 overs, CSK had pulled back the MI innings wonderfully through #Bravo and #Nehra.
But the last three overs belonged to Pollard.
He ripped into the CSK seamers - Bravo and Mohit to leapfrog their total to 188.
46 runs came off the last 3 overs.
Over 18 - 15 runs
Over 19 - 15 runs
Over 20 - 16 runs.
Massive damage done.
A couple of iffy decisions on wides cost CSK a bit, though.
MS Dhoni seemed disappointed and talked to umpire Dharmasena about it.
So, how does this pan out now?
188 in 20 overs. Can CSK pull this off? or will MI restrict them?
Game on...
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#CSK vs #MI
#Qualifier 1
#Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
19th May 2015
Looking straight down the barrel (staring at chasing 200), #CSK have clawed back brilliantly through #Bravo and #Nehra.
Overs 16 and 17 have been game changers for CSK.
Just 8 runs came off these two overs and two key wickets lost.
#RohitSharma and Hardik Pandya both fell trying to hit long shots, pegging MI back.
MI's hopes to reach 200 now rest on #Pollard and #Rayudu.
3 overs to go. Game on...
#LIVE #SCORE
MI - 156 for 4, 18 overs
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#CSK vs #MI
#Qualifier 1
#Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
19th May 2015
First #Strategic #Timeout of the game.
#MI started cautiously in the first 4 overs.
#Nehra and #Ashwin troubled them with swing and spin.
But, they've covered up brilliantly in the next 2 overs
#Simmons and #Parthiv have opened up and smashed Ashwin and Nehra for 14 runs each to even things out.
The battle looking exciting already.
Dhoni has utilized 3 overs each from his top 2 bowlers.
So, its going to be interesting how he's going to go from here?
For MI, they need to carry on the momentum..
#LIVE #SCORE
MI - 48 for 0 in 6 overs
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#CSK vs #MI
#Qualifier 1
#Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
19th May 2015
We're close to start of Qualifier 1.
Its toss time.
#MSDhoni and #RohitSharma in the centre.
Coin tossed ... and it comes a tail, correctly called by Rohit.
MI have won the toss and elected to bat first.
Massive game this and batting first would be a huge advantage with pressure all around.
Is it going to be the first opportunity or a last min dash performance that would decide the fate of this game? Amazing crowd, great atmosphere and big clash. What else can you ask for.
Let the battle explode.
The big #IPL final is calling....
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The IPL Points table picture is finally clear on a #Super #Sunday.
After weeks of speculation, tricks and turns, rain god interruptions and some amazing cricket performances ... the final 4 teams have been decided.
1. Chennai Super Kings
2. Mumbai Indians
3. Royal Challengers Bangalore
4. Rajasthan Royals
The battle for these positions was so tight and complex, #MI, #RCB and #RR actually finished on 16 points each. Mumbai pipped Bangalore on higher number of wins while RCB edged RR due to better net run rate. It was that close...
Fair to say, the best four teams qualified although KKR will feel they missed out inspite of being pretty consistent and strong throughout while SRH will feel hard done by that heart-crushing loss vs RCB in the previous game.
Today's games held big significance for all teams
In the first one, RCB faced DD. A huge game for RCB to win and keep their qualifying hopes alive. Alarmingly for them, DD posted a strong 188 in 20 overs to send scare waves in that RCB #dugout. However, as with their two previous games - rain - affected this game too. And this time, it was kind to them. The game washed off. RCB taking a vital one point to ensure they end up on 16 points and secured a qualifying berth. It was kind of out-of-jail situation for them really because the target was indeed stiff.
The other game, it was a knockout between SRH and MI.
Hyderabad had the home advantage but were blown away by a terrific spell of fast bowling from Malinga and McClenaghan upfront to be bowled out for a paltry 113 in 20 overs. MI openers Simmons and Parthiv chased the target easily to hand over 2 points and most importantly second spot in that points table. How wheels of fortune turned for them .. after five straight defeats at the beginning of the season, to hit that #2 spot was nothing short of amazing. It must be said though that other teams floundering at wrong moments helped their cause big time.
So its all set for the play-offs stage at #IPL8
19th May 2015 - Qualifier 1 - CSK vs MI at Mumbai (MI will have big home advantage plus loser of this game gets another crack at the final)
20th May 2015 - Eliminator - RCB vs RR at Pune (Winner needs to play loser of Qualifier 1 to progress to final, Loser eliminated)
22nd May 2015- Qualifier 2 - Loser of Qualifier 1 vs Winner of Eliminator
24th May 2015 - Big final at Kolkata
Mouth watering prospect this!
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Who will make it to the top 4 at this year's IPL?
With just a game or two remaining for most teams, the picture is very unclear! The last three results have made it even more interesting and puzzling!
As if last week's action wasn't intriguing enough, this week is proving to provide greater suspense and drama than a Sherlock Holmes' mystery.
Take a look
- 6 teams out of 8 have a chance to qualify for the knockout stages of this tournament.
- Positions 1 to 4 are completely hazy and no one can pin-point their standing with just a game or two remaining per team
- The two ousted teams #DD and #KXIP won their latest games throwing the field wide open yet again
#DD steamrolls #CSK
With CSK really looking to close out its pole position in the points table, facing DD was their easiest game. This considering DD have been hot-cold all the way through and their inconsistency in batting has let them down badly. CSK, although not red hot, were expected to breeze through this one. What happened was nothing short of amazing.
First CSK was shot out for 120 on a pretty good wicket owing to some solid bowling and fielding from DD. Then their batsman took center-stage (Yuvraj and Nayyar) and annihilated a rusty CSK bowling attack and easily chased the set target, It was as if DD had nothing to loose and played with gay abandon. Result a thumping win for DD, a big dent for CSK on two counts. No points and their #NRR took a solid beating (which seems to be extremely critical for position qualification considering state of the points table)
#KXIP hurts #RCB badly
The other ousted team, KXIP had nothing to lose either.
What made matters worse for #RCB was #rain curtailed the game to 10 over a side. A clear lottery. In such cases the minnows clearly have an edge because the pressure to win solely lies with the stronger team! And it turned out exactly that way.
Edgy RCB bowlers leaked out too many runs upfront. Saha smashing Starc, Aravind to take away the initiative. Some poor batting at the end meant they scored 112 in 10 overs. OK but not a great total to challenge Gayle, Kohli and Devilliers? Well, as it panned out, KXIP broke through the batting order with good bowling and fielding getting the Big 3 out cheaply and then choking the innings wonderfully by 20 runs! Big margin. No points to RCB and dent in their #NRR just like CSK.
#MI surprise #KKR
Needing to win badly, MI went out with purpose while KKR needing one win to assure a top two positioning on the points table went cautiously. Result? even after a poor start and early wickets, MI's Pandya and Pollard managed to pile on 171 in 20 overs. Pandya was brilliant while Pollard, for a change, played second fiddle but ensured he stayed there to avoid any further damage.
KKR never looked ready for that run chase and ran out of steam. Yusuf Pathan did try to pull a rabbit out of the hat but a brilliant final over by Pollard ensured MI defended and won by 5 runs (12 runs were needed for last over with Pathan at the crease)
So, where is all this heading?
Looks like the last game will decide the top 4.
And boy will that not be interesting? and DD/KXIP playing spoilsport means its anyone's guess to choose a winner....
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What an extra ordinary last week at #IPL8!!
From a 4 four war battle for 2 spots, its come down to 5 way battle for 3 spots and everything is so uncertain!
#RRs under big threat of not qualifying in top 4
From a seemingly safe Top-2 spot a week ago, RR have slid considerably and look on the brink of finishing outside the top 4. Thats an amazing turnaround of fortunes for this team that looked absolutely dominant at the beginning of the tournament. Just goes to show its about momentum. The day they lost that super over to KXIP, their fortunes and momentum have turned for worse! They're losing game after game and stand on verge of elimination from the #playoffs. With just one game to go, a victory doesnt guarantee them that spot unless one the lower teams flounders badly. Watson as captain or Steve Smith, is not making any difference to their performance at the moment.
#CSK just about holding onto its lead
An off color CSK has just about managed to win sufficient games to stay top of the points table. This is courtesy #MSDhoni captaincy and overall balance of their team. Their home record in enviable and that has helped them too. The playoffs however are outside #Chennai and that will worry them no ends. They need to pull up their socks to maintain their reputation as the best side in the IPL over the years. Reversal to Mumbai at Chidambaram Stadium due to miscalculated gamble by Dhoni had gotten them into a tight spot, but a typical hard fought victory against RR ensured they stay top. With two games to go, they seem all set to play in the #knockouts.
#KKR marching on their overall ability and attitude to win
Led wonderfully by Gautam Gambhir, the defending champions rose to the top for a short while. However, its their overall ability both with bat but more so with the bowl thats helping them stay in hunt for Qualifier 1 (a game where loser gets another crack to make it to the final). Andre Russell has been a revelation for them while Yusuf and the spin trio of Piyush, Hogg and Narine have pushed KKR along wonderfully well.
#RCB on the charge after #ABdevillers, #Gayle and #ViratKohli strike rich form
The batting, that seemed to be their bane in the first half of the tournament has started clicking and how? First it was the Killer "Gayle" show with a stunning 117 vs KXIP. This was followed by an even more entertaining 133* by AB deVilliers and solid 82* by Virat Kohli to demolish MI. Mitchell Starc and Co are bowling oppositions out consistently to ensure they get much need wins to get into the knockouts.
#SRH could be the dark horse
While the top teams have been hogging all limelight, SRH has quietly sneaked into 3rd place after their win against KXIP. avid Warner, Shikhar Dhawan, Moses Henriques are winning games with the bat and surprisingly their bowling lineup is bowling other teams inspite of resting both their bigwigs - Steyn and Boult. Watch for this team, if they reach playoffs.
#MI, once again from behind...
first 5 games lost, then 5 games won. This is how it has been for MI this season. Backs to wall on one day and outright dominant the other. Inconsistency has been their biggest threat and worry all through. Bowlers need to pull up their socks. Batsmen seem to coming into their own but a collective effort will be critical to put them into the playoffs
#DD and #KXIP - Could they play spoilsport for the top 6?
DD and KXIP are out of the reckoning but can they beat one the top 6 and upset all equations. Dont count that out and thats what the excitement of IPL is all about!!
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