I mentioned in my last column that Chennai Super Kings have the knack of performing better under pressure and that's what they did against Mumbai Indians in Bangalore. Mumbai in general had chased very well throughout the tournament but in a knock out situation like this, where the pressure is more I think it would have been better had Mumbai batted first. They could have posted a decent score and attacked with their bowling led by Lasith Malinga.
It was an extraordinary effort by Chennai to get to 187 after being two for one at one stage. Skipper M S Dhoni often saves his best for the big matches, and Wednesday was one such occasion. He is a different player when he looks to go for the shots and he played an amazing knock.
DD vs CSK preview: Delhi hoping to come hard at Chennai
The six that he hit over deep mid-wicket to Malinga in the second last over was just extraordinary and if that was not enough, the six over extra cover by Dwayne Bravo a couple of balls later was simply bizarre. It was a delightful batting display by Dhoni and Bravo, and not to forget the contribution early from the ever dependable Mike Hussey and S Badrinath.
Mumbai had the batting to chase the total, but in such pressure games it's not easy and Chennai kept striking regularly. Bravo's spell was pretty crucial and he mixed things wonderfully and except for Dwayne Smith, no other Mumbai batsmen really threatened to take the game away.
Chennai will now face the Delhi Daredevils in their own den at Chepauk. Delhi made a few mistakes against Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday. In conditions better suited for spin bowling, they went for a predominant pace attack, maybe that’s because they have been a good batting unit and they trust their batting enough to chase down any score, but if that was the case, it was quite baffling to see Ross Taylor coming so down in the order, almost in a no win situation.
Delhi lost the opportunity to secure a berth in the final in what could have been their maiden IPL final appearance and now find themselves in a must win situation against the dangerous Chennai, who had an easy victory over Delhi when the two last met in same venue.
Chennai would have the edge considering it's a home game and they adapt to pressure well and would look to make their fourth appearance in the final. But Delhi have played good cricket throughout the tournament and the likes of Virender Sehwag, David Warner and Taylor can change the game on their own. So we have another good match on our hands.
By - Simer Singh