Chennai IPL kings
Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni led his team like a true general and his deputy Suresh Raina batted, fielded and bowled like a champion as Chennai Super Kings lifted the third Indian Premier League with a 22-run win over Mumbai Indians in a pulsating final at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai yesterday.
Batting first Chennai put up a fighting 168-5 in their share of 20 overs with Raina hitting an unbeaten 57 and Dhoni contributing a solid 22. Chennai were struggling at 68 for 3 after 12 overs when Dhoni got into the act: 100 runs were added in the last eight overs, and Raina scored 44 at a strike-rate of 200 after the first drop.
Mambai might have walked into the final as a better side after a fantastic run in the group stages, but they faltered when it mattered most. Sachin Tendualkar beat the pain-barrier and scored a fine 48 even with a split webbing but some strange moves in the batting order eventually proved costly for them.
Mumbai promotions Abhishek Nayar and Harbhajan Singh up in the batting order in place of JP Duminy and Kieron Polard and it did not work as wicket fell at regular intervals and run-rate continued to climb beyond the limit.
Giant West Indian Pollard however threw caution to the wind when he clobbered 22 runs including two sixes and as many fours in the 18th over bowled by Australian Doug Bollinger. It was however not enough for the best team in the competition to overhaul the target.
The victory meant Dhoni adding another feather to his captaincy hat with aggression, smartness and flair, and won the third IPL through a fourth one-sided knockout match in a row.
Suresh Raina capitalised on two dropped catches to score a crucial fifty. But there was no denying of his electrifying presence on the filed. He took one wicket and more importantly took a stunning diving catch at deep mid-wicket.
SCORES IN BRIEF
Chennai Super Kings: 168 for 5 (Raina 57 not out, Dhoni 22; Fernando 2-23)
MUMBAI INDIANS: 146 for 9 (Tendulkar 48, Pollard 27, Jakati 2-27)
Result: Chennai won the final by 22 runs.
Man-of-the-final: Suresh Raina
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