Congratulations to CSK and commiserations to Sunrisers, particularly the wonderful pair of Kane Williamson and Rashid Khan. Thanks for your company, bye!
After two years on the naughty step, CSK have won the IPL on their return. Shane Watson played the innings of his T20 life, maybe all his life, blitzing 117 from 57 balls. His last 109 runs came from 41 deliveries.
CHENNAI SUPER KINGS WIN THE IPL 2018!
CSK WIN BY EIGHT WICKETS WITH NINE BALLS TO SPARE
18.3 overs: Chennai Super Kings 181-2 (Watson 117, Rayudu 15) Rayudu slams four through the covers to complete an immense victory!
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18th over: Chennai Super Kings 177-2 (Watson 117, Rayudu 11) Watson takes CSK to within two of victory with two brutal straight drives for four off Kaul.
SHANE WATSON MAKES AN OUTRAGEOUS HUNDRED!
17th over: Chennai Super Kings 166-2 (Watson 108, Rayudu 10) That’s it! Watson limps a single off Rashid to reach an astonishing century: 51 balls, seven fours, eight sixes. And he took 11 balls to get off the mark! The milestone liberates him sufficiently to hit Rashid Khan’s last two balls for four. CSK are going to win at a canter.
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16th over: Chennai Super Kings 154-2 (Watson 98, Rayudu 8) So much for playing Kumar with respect. Rayudu has just Leatherfaced a short ball over long off for six. A single brings Watson on strike, and he steers a single to move to 98 and keep the strike. CSK need 25 from 24 balls.
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As Rob Key and Mark Butcher have just said on Sky Sports, CSK’s tactics have been excellent. Kumar and Rashid Khan, who have been played with respect, have bowled six overs for 22. The rest have bowled nine overs for 122.
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15th over: Chennai Super Kings 146-2 (Watson 97, Rayudu 2) Rashid Khan returns to the attack, and if he takes five wickets in an over this might just get interesting. Rayudu is happy to play out a testing over that includes a big appeal for LBW from a googly. It was given not out but Sunrisers had little choice but to gamble on a review. I thought it hit him outside the line, and replays confirm my eyesight is not quite as bad as I feared. Not out.
CSK need 33 from 30 balls.
14th over: Chennai Super Kings 145-2 (Watson 97, Rayudu 1) Watson deflects Brathwaite to third man for four to move into the nineties, and then he pings a slower ball over midwicket for his eighth six! This is an utterly ridiculous innings. He had eight from 16 balls; now he has 97 from 48.
WICKET! Chennai Super Kings 133-2 (Raina c Goswami b Brathwaite 32)
A scintilla of hope for Sunrisers. Brathwaite produces a nasty bouncer that Raina gloves through to Goswami, who takes an outstanding leaping catch. It’s given not out but Sunrisers review and Raina, who knows he’s gloved it, walks off long before the third umpire officially overturns the decision.
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13th over: Chennai Super Kings 131-1 (Watson 86, Raina 31) Sandeep Sharma returns in place of Shakib, whose first over went for 15. It’s much of a muchness to Watson, who smashes three consecutive sixes and 27 from the over! He can’t run so he’s blasting the ball to all parts. It’s a stunning display of hitting. He has smashed 78 from the last 29 balls, including seven sixes! CSK were cruising a minute ago; now they are doing whatever comes after cruising. They only need 48 from 42 balls.
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12th over: Chennai Super Kings 104-1 (Watson 60, Raina 31) Brathwaite comes into the attack. Watson tries to steal an overthrow and winces with pain; it looks like he’s pulled something. He can barely run - so he just drags Brathwaite into the leg side for four to bring up the hundred. CSK are cruising at the moment. They need 75 from 48 balls.
“Evening Rob,” says James Lane. “Did you catch Michael Slater’s kurta-cleavage during the break? I’m still getting flashes.”
I missed it as I went to get a coffee. It’s times like these when Catch Up TV really doesn’t come into its own.
11th over: Chennai Super Kings 95-1 (Watson 53, Raina 29) Watson brings up a brilliant, ballsy fifty by sweeping Shakib’s first ball of the innings for six. Watson made nought from 10 balls, eight from 16, but he kept his nerve and has bashed 43 off the last 17. Raina ends another great over for CSK with a sweet straight six. Sunrisers are in urgent need of a wicket or, failing that, a dot ball.
“What are your thoughts about ECB’s new 100-ball format,” says Sahil Pandita. “Is it really required? What difference does 20 balls make?”
It means the BBC can fit the games into a certain timeslot. It’s hard to see any other reason for it. That said, I’m not as against it as most people. T20 is a free-for-all in terms of innovation so yeah, do your worst. My main concern is what it means for poor old Statsguru.
10th over: Chennai Super Kings 80-1 (Watson 45, Raina 22) CSK are playing Rashid Khan with total respect, aiming for nothing grander than a single off every ball. They manage four off the first five deliveries – and then get some bonus runs when the last ball scuttles away for four leg byes. CSK need 99 from the last 10 overs. This is going to the last over, maybe to the last ball.
9th over: Chennai Super Kings 72-1 (Watson 43, Raina 16) CSK are targeting Kaul. Watson monsters a straight six and slices a low full toss this far short of Rashid, charging in from deep point. The next ball is slower, picked and belted to long off for four. Watson, who made eight from his first 16 balls, has since made 35 from 14. And poor Kaul’s first two overs have gone for 16 apiece.
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8th over: Chennai Super Kings 56-1 (Watson 28, Raina 15) It’s time for Rashid Khan, the best T20 cricketer in the world. One way or another, his four overs will probably decide this match. Raina is a key man, having played Rashid well in the past. CSK play low-risk cricket throughout his first over, content to milk five singles. Well played.
7th over: Chennai Super Kings 51-1 (Watson 26, Raina 13) Kumar is replaced by Siddarth Kaul, whose second ball is flicked majestically for six by Watson. He slices the next delivery high over the off side, just short of Rashid Khan running in from the boundary. A brilliant over for CSK – 16 from it - continues when Raina helps two poor deliveries around the corner for four. CSK need 128 from 78 balls.
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6th over: Chennai Super Kings 35-1 (Watson 19, Raina 4) Sandeep Sharma also continues into a third over. Watson hammers him towards cow corner, where Rashid Khan saves three runs with the most nonchalant grab on the run as the ball bounces up. Watson eventually gets hold of one later in the over, clouting Sharma miles over midwicket for six. He follows that with four more and then Raina survives a run-out referral after a neat bit of footwork from Sharma. A desperate slide saved Raina. This is great stuff now.
“Two weeks ago, my expectations of “Hamilton” were recklessly high - and, when I saw the show, surpassed,” says Gary Naylor. “On Tuesday, my expectations of Rashid Khan were recklessly high - and, when I saw the lad, surpassed. How lucky we are to be alive right now.”
5th over: Chennai Super Kings 20-1 (Watson 7, Raina 2) Kumar continues into his third over, with Williamson keen to ram home Sunrisers’ advantage. Four from the over. This is exquisitely tight, the atmospheric equivalent of Spandex trousers that are a size too small. Sunrisers would love to get rid of Raina before Rashid Khan comes into the attack. At the moment they won’t want to get rid of Shane Watson, who has struggled to seven from 15 balls.
“Watson’s been a disgrace so far,” says Hari. “Think he’s tiring from a long tournament but he essentially got Faf out there through all those dots.”
4th over: Chennai Super Kings 16-1 (Watson 5, Raina 0) CSK need 163 from 16 overs.
WICKET! Chennai Super Kings 16-1 (du Plessis ct and b Sharma 10)
A huge wicket for Sunrisers! Sandeep Sharma duped du Plessis with a fine slower ball that was toe-ended miles in the air. Sharma called for the catch himself and took it confidently.
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3rd over: Chennai Super Kings 10-0 (Watson 0, du Plessis 10) This is an extraordinary start from Kumar. He extends his sequence of dot balls to 10 (T-E-N) before du Plessis works the 11th to backward point for a single. Make that five singles: a narcissistic throw from Hoola flies to the boundary and gives CSK four bonus runs. Watson was easily home so that was not the brightest bit of cricket from Hoola.
2nd over: Chennai Super Kings 5-0 (Watson 0, du Plessis 5) Sandeep Sharma shares the new ball. His second ball is blasted through the covers for four by Faf du Plessis, Sunrisers’ nemesis five days ago. That aside it’s a harmless over for SRH. Shane Watson has nought from eight balls.
1st over: Chennai Super Kings 0-0 (Watson 0, du Plessis 0) Bhuvneshwar Kumar starts the innings with a brilliant maiden to Shane Watson. The first and last deliveries of the over were storming legcutter that beat the outside edge. That is a helluva tone to set for the innings.
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Innings break Sunrisers would surely have taken that total at the start, though they might regret scoring only 18 from the last two overs. I’d say they are slight favourites, particularly if Rashid Khan works his not inconsiderable magic. See you soon for the CSK innings.
WICKET! Sunrisers Hyderabad 178-6 (Brathwaite c Rayudu b Thakur 21)
20th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 178-6 (Pathan 45) The last over, bowled by Thakur, goes for 10. He started very well, conceding four from the first four balls. Then Brathwaite clunked a pull down the ground for six, a ridiculous shot, before holing out off the final delivery of the innings. Chennai Super Kings needs 179 to win the 2018 IPL.
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19th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 168-5 (Pathan 42, Brathwaite 15) Ngidi bowls an outstanding penultimate over of the innings – only eight from it. And it would have been a lot better had Brathwaite not dumped the last delivery over wide long on for six.
18th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 160-5 (Pathan 41, Brathwaite 8) What a shot from Carlos Brathwaite! His first ball a wide from Bravo; the second, the first legitimate delivery of his innings, was a slower one that he picked and redirected over long off for a huge six. Pick that out! Bravo’s last over goes for 16, including another vicious hit for four from Pathan, and he ends with nasty figures of 4-0-46-1.
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17th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 144-5 (Pathan 35, Brathwaite 0) That was the last ball of an over in which Pathan cuffed Ngidi down the ground for six more! This is an immense performance from the big man, who has scorched to 35 from 18 balls.
“If Chennai lose this final it will be their fifth loss in an IPL final,” says Sahil Pandita. “I always wonder whether it is better to reach lots of finals and lose most of them or reach some and win all of them. The agony must be too much to handle.”
I think I’d rather win three and lose five than win two and lose none – not only do you win one more, but the wins mean more because of the defeats.
WICKET! Sunrisers 144-5 (Hooda c sub b Ngidi 3)
Hooda falls, flipping Ngidi straight to the substitute Shorey at deep backward square leg.
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16th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 134-4 (Pathan 27, Hooda 1)
WICKET! Sunrisers 133-4 (Shakib c Raina b Bravo 23)
Pathan survives a potential run out when Bravo fails to take the ball cleanly in his follow through – but Shakib goes next ball, clouting a low full toss to extra cover. He made a handy 23 from 15 balls, and we’re going to have a timeout.
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15th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 126-3 (Shakib 22, Pathan 21) The dangerous Pathan makes room to smack Sharma over extra cover for six, the highlight of another decent over for Sunrisers. They are inching towards a score that will be very competitive with their bowling attack.
14th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 117-3 (Shakib 20, Pathan 14) A short ball from Thakur is flashed square on the off side for four by Pathan, who looks in the mood today.
13th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 108-3 (Shakib 18, Pathan 7) The new batsman Yusuf Pathan glides Sharma for four to get off the mark. Though the dismissal of Williamson is a big blow, Sunrisers are still right in this game.
“Dear Rob,” says Aditi Prabhudesai. “This is off topic but do you get much grief for not having a Twitter account? I sometimes wonder if I am a sane person since I am not given to much Tweeting.”
I don’t really get any grief, only a smug sense of moral superiority and regular pangs of regret that I once had a Twitter account.
WICKET! Sunrisers 101-3 (Williamson st Dhoni b K Sharma 47)
Williamson has gone! He is so angry with himself. He charged the first ball from Karn Sharma, who saw him coming and slipped it well wide of off stump. Williamson ran past the ball and MS Dhoni completed the stumping.
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12th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 101-2 (Williamson 47, Shakib 18) Sunrisers have defended some low totals in this year’s IPL, so they are pretty well placed at the moment – especially with Williamson anchoring the innings so immaculately. He smacks Bravo’s first two deliveries for four, a princely extra-cover drive followed by a fierce pull. Kevin Pietersen once said that talking to Andrew Strauss about the IPL was like trying to explain gangsta rap to the vicar. Watching Williamson play T20 is like seeing a classical musician try their hand at gangsta rap, and be absolutely brilliant at it.
11th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 90-2 (Williamson 37, Shakib 17) Oof, that was desperately close. Williamson, making room outside leg stump, sliced Jadeja just wide of the diving Ngidi at short third man. The ball raced away for four, and then Shakib muscled consecutive deliveries to leg for six and four. Seventeen from the over, and Shakib has 17 from seven balls.
10th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 73-2 (Williamson 32, Shakib 6) Chahar returns to bowl his final over, a good one that goes for only three. He ends with figures of 4-0-25-0.
9th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 70-2 (Williamson 30, Shakib 5) A misfield from Watson helps the new batsman Shakib get off the mark with a boundary. Both sides will be fairly happy with this position. But so much depends on Williamson.
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WICKET! Sunrisers Hyderabad 64-2 (Dhawan b Jadeja 26)
Gone! Ravindra Jadeja strikes with his third ball, angling a delivery through Dhawan’s attempted slog sweep. That’s a really big wicket.
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8th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 62-1 (Dhawan 25, Williamson 28) Dwayne Bravo, a T20 superstar for over a decade, concedes only one run from his first four balls – but then Williamson smacks 10 off the last two balls of the over! He picked a slower ball and slapped it over extra cover for four; then, when Bravo slipped a low full toss towards leg stumps, Williamson lifted it high over long leg for six! He is playing beautifully. Of course he is; he always does.
“It’s not just England’s frailties against spin that are a problem, but also their attitude,” says Aditi Prabhudesai. “For example, their insistence on playing biff bang bosh when the conditions are screaming for a measured approach. Their rigidity will cost them a knockout match in the World Cup for sure.”
They were better in the winter, when they played sensibly to win lower-scoring games against Australia and New Zealand. It felt like a bit of a breakthrough, though we won’t really know until July 2019.
7th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 51-1 (Dhawan 24, Williamson 18) The legspinner Karn Sharma comes into the attack. Dhawan hoicks a flat, hard sweep for four to bring up the fifty for Sunrisers. He and Williamson are delivering yet again; after a slow start they’ve scored 34 from the last three overs.
6th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 42-1 (Dhawan 18, Williamson 16) Thakur replaces Ngidi and starts with a wide. His third legitimate delivery is smoked over long-on for six by Dhawan, which allows Sunrisers to milk singles for the rest of the over.
“Looking at the performance of the English players in the IPL, it is quite clear that they struggle still against spin, especially the likes of Alex Hales and Jason Roy,” says Hari. “I think England are an unbelievable limited overs side in flat conditions but are definitely going to struggle when there is a bit in for the bowlers especially the tweakers.”
The middle order are generally good players of spin. But yes, the flatter the better. I’ve a suspicion there will be a pitchgate (sic) during next year’s World Cup.
Anyone out there? The players are having a quick unscheduled drinks break, since you asked.
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5th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 30-1 (Dhawan 9, Williamson 14) You can understand Sunrisers’ approach, given their strengths and weaknesses, but the scoreboard pressure is starting to manifest itself in one or two desperate shots. Williamson top-edges a pick-up shot off Chahal for six, the first of the innings. Two balls later he pulls smoothly and authoritatively for four. Thirteen from the over, a good one for Sunrisers.u can understand Sunrisers’ approach, given their strengths and weaknesses, but the scoreboard pressure is starting to manifest itself in one or two desperate shots. Williamson top-edges a pick-up shot off Chahal for six, the first of the innings. Two balls later he pulls smoothly and authoritatively for four. Thirteen from the over, a good one for Sunrisers.
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4th over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 17-1 (Dhawan 8, Williamson 3) Sunrisers are batting cautiously, scared of losing another wicket – so much so that Ngidi’s second over is a maiden to Williamson.
3rd over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 17-1 (Dhawan 8, Williamson 3) CSK have made a dominant start and look less nervous than Sunrisers, who can take only three singles from Chahar’s second over.
“This live blog is a pleasant surprise!” says Don Mihsill. “One of the undertouted benefits of leagues like IPL, Big Bash etc is the opportunity it provides players from less prominent nations to develop their game by playing in pressure situations, with and against some of the best professionals going around. These chances were simply not available to an earlier era (the young Nepali leggie Lamichanne is another one;). For growing the game, these leagues are a powerful tool. They’re well marketed, pay well, scout for the best talent (irrespective of nationality). It also makes a talented youngster in a country where cricket may be the third, fourth or fifth sport, actively contemplate honing their skills. Afghanistan are due to play India in their debut test. Their bowling attack will include Mujib, Rashid and Nabi - all participants in the IPL. I’m guessing they won’t be overawed and will be quite used to Indian conditions.”
Yes, agreed. I cannot wait to see how Rashid Khan gets on in Test cricket.
2nd over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 14-1 (Dhawan 7, Williamson 1) It’s a strange thing to say at one down in the second over, but Sunrisers really need a partnership. So much depends on Dhawan and the captain Williamson. He pushes Ngidi for a quick single to get off the mark.
WICKET! Sunrisers 13-1 (Goswami run out 5)
A hideous start for Sunrisers. Goswami comes back for an ill-judged second run and is miles short when MS Dhoni breaks the stumps.
1st over: Sunrisers Hyderabad 6-0 (Goswami 3, Dhawan 2) A false start for CSK: Chahar’s first ball is a high full toss that is no-balled, which means a free hit for Dhawan. He can only chip it for a single. Chahar pulls it back thereafter, with no boundaries in the over.
Any predictions? The noggin says CSK - they are more experienced, less dependent on key players and have had more rest this week. But Sunrisers have Rashid Khan and Kane Williamson, so I’m going for them.
The teams
Chennai Super Kings Watson, du Plessis, Raina, Rayudu, Dhoni (c/wk), Bravo, Jadeja, Chahra, K Sharma, Thakur, Ngidi.
Sunrisers Hyderabad Dhawan, Goswami (wk), Williamson (c), Shakib, Hooda, Pasthan, Brathwaite, Rashid, Kumar, Kaul, S Sharma.
CSK have won the toss and will bowl first
That’s a bit of a surprise, as it means Sunrisers’ superb bowling attack will know what total they have to defend. The toss was a minor shambles, with TV’s Sanjay Manjrekar not having a clue who won it. MS Dhoni and Kane Williamson managed to sort it out between them.
Preamble
Hello. Let us give thanks to England: their generous acquiescence this morning means there is no Test match to cover, so we’re going to liveblog the IPL final instead. A match like this needs no introduction, and not only because I’ve been caught cold by the change of plan. What’s an IPL anyway?
Today’s matinee show has a simple pitch: it’s CSK’s veterans against Sunrisers’ innocents, most notably the wonderful Afghanistan legspinner Rashid Khan. He produced one of the great performances to beat KKR in the semi-final: he hit 34 from 10 balls (!) and then took three for 19 from his four overs.
Rashid is part of the best bowling attack in the competition; CSK have the best batting line-up. They also have more experience and have already beaten Sunrisers three times in this year’s competition, although two of those were extremely tight.
It’s too close to call - but call it we will, for the love of the game and being paid, so that we can buy bread ‘n’ spread. Our commentary starts with the toss at around 2pm BST.
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