Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings were crowned 2018 IPL champions Sunday as they beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets in the final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

Shane Watson was the star for Chennai as he hit an unbeaten 117 despite carrying an injury as Chennai cruised to the title.

Chennai won the toss and put Sunrisers in to bat with Shikhar Dhawan and Shreevats Goswami opening proceedings.

Goswami went early as he departed in the second over, which allowed captain Kane Williamson to arrive and look to build some momentum.

Sunrisers looked as though they were starting to take control but then saw Dhawan clean bowled for 26. Williamson followed shortly afterwards, a big blow for Sunrisers.

Broken Cricket showed how impressive he's been this season:

Kane Williamson becomes the fifth player to score 700+ runs in an IPL season...

— Broken Cricket (@BrokenCricket) May 27, 2018

The captain had looked to be getting into some real rhythm but departed for 47 off 36 balls. Shakib Al Hasan added 23, and Yusuf Pathan managed an unbeaten 46 as Sunrisers set Chennai a chase of 179.

Chennai suffered an early blow as they lost the in-form Faf du Plessis for just 10 but were then indebted to a sensational performance from Watson.

The Australian had to be patient initially as he did not score off his first 10 balls but then showcased his power as he dismantled the Sunrisers' attack.

Watson also seemed to pick up an injury midway through the game and was in no mood to run, but it made no difference as he continued to find the boundary with regularity.

The highlight of his performance was in the 13th when he managed a superb 28 runs, as shown by ESPNCricinfo:

Surely CSK have the title sealed nowhttps://t.co/8L3JWGQsSo #CSKvSRH #IPL2018Final pic.twitter.com/L3vACakcwJ

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) May 27, 2018

A century looked inevitable, and it duly arrived to leave Chennai on the cusp of victory, as shown by Sky Sports:

100‼‼ @ShaneRWatson33 has surely won @ChennaiIPL the #VIVOIPL title... they need only 22 runs to win from 21 balls

Watch #CSKvSRH live on Sky Sports Cricket & Mix. Over-by-over updates 👉 https://t.co/hGY42lNYJo #OrangeArmy #WhistlePodu pic.twitter.com/VkMEWGrjHn

— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) May 27, 2018

Ambati Rayudu was the man to seal victory with a four, but the final was all about Watson, who finished on 117 off 57 balls.

Cricket analyst Freddie Wilde explained just how good Watson's innings was:

Against one of the strongest bowling attacks in IPL history, in the final & on the biggest stage - that is one of the great IPL innings from Shane Watson. He held his nerve to absorb massive early pressure before kicking on with crisp, powerful ball-striking. #IPL

— Freddie Wilde (@fwildecricket) May 27, 2018

Sunrisers have had the best attack in the tournament, but they were simply no match for an inspired Watson. His heroics were enough to hand Chennai a third IPL title in some style.

Chennai Super Kings will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2018 final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.

The two teams topped the standings with 18 points, but Sunrisers came out on top courtesy of a better run rate.

Both teams will know all about each other having played three times already in the competition. Chennai have won all three matches and are the only team Sunrisers haven't beaten this season.

Sunrisers will have the perfect opportunity to put that record straight on Sunday when both teams go for glory.

         

Date: Sunday, 27 May

Start Time: 2:30 p.m. BST/7 p.m IST

TV Info: Sky Sports Mix (UK)

Live Stream: Sky Go (UK), Willow (U.S.)

        

IPL 2018 Final Predictions

Chennai are into their seventh final and have had the upper hand against their opponents in this year's tournament.

In the league phase, Chennai won by just four runs in Hyderabad but by eight wickets in Pune. They also met in Qualifier 1, where the Super Kings tasted victory by two wickets.

The experience of captain MS Dhoni will be crucial. Former Indian cricketer Hemang Badani noted just how influential the 36-year-old has been for his team:

https://twitter.com/hemangkbadani/status/998985610873397248

Yet for all their success in reaching the final the Super Kings have only managed two IPL wins. ESPNcricinfo showed their record:

.@ChennaiIPL made their seventh IPL final in nine seasons, but will they end up as champions? https://t.co/rscM8qYEiw #IPL2018 pic.twitter.com/tNDmwOEsqV

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) May 23, 2018

Dhoni leads the team from the front and goes into the final with the best batting average in the tournament.

But the team is also full of quality with players who have produced the goods when it matters. Ambati Rayudu is the team's leading run scorer, while Shardul Thakur and Dwayne Bravo have taken the most wickets.

Meanwhile, South Africa captain Faf du Plessis was their hero as they booked their place in the final against Sunrisers, as he hit an unbeaten 67 to secure the win. 

Cricketer Anjum Chopra explained what makes the team so special:

What a wonderful team #CSK is. Their self belief and the players standing up in crunch situations is amazing. Brilliant consistency for their qualification to yet another @IPL #Final. Their 7th Final 🙌🏻@ChennaiIPL

— Anjum Chopra (@chopraanjum) May 22, 2018

Yet they face a tough test against a Sunrisers side who ended a four-match losing streak to beat Kolkata Knight Riders and secure a final spot.

Rashid Khan was the match-winner for Sunrisers, as he put in a sensational performance to help win the game. ESPNcricinfo showed just how brilliantly the 19-year-old played:

The greatest all-round performance in T20s? https://t.co/NUpQVZGsmO #IPL2018 #SRHvKKR #KKRvSRH pic.twitter.com/3wf5O5E07H

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) May 25, 2018

Khan, Siddarth Kaul and Carlos Brathwaite will be a real threat to Chennai and will feel they have something to prove after three straight defeats to Sunday's opponents.

Captain Kane Williamson will also look to hurt Chennai with the bat. The New Zealander goes into the final as the highest run scorer in the tournament.

Cricketer Mohammad Kaif said the final is a meeting between the two best teams:

This was @rashidkhan_19 ‘s day and when it is the day of a top player, his team invariably wins. Congratulations @SunRisers . The two top teams meet in the final on Sunday, must be a fascinating contest #KKRVSRH

— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) May 25, 2018

Sunrisers will head into Sunday's match on a high after a dramatic win over Kolkata Knight Riders. If Khan can maintain his form, he will cause Chennai all sorts of problems. What has been an enthralling tournament looks set for an exciting finish on Sunday.

                         

All stats from the competition's official website.

It was a difficult end to the 2015 Indian Premier League season for the Chennai Super Kings and their inspirational superstar captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

The Super Kings qualified for the final against the Mumbai Indians but lost by 41 runs as their bowlers allowed Mumbai to hit 202 for five batting first.

For Dhoni in particular, it was a sad end to this year's tournament, as he was desperate to win the title for the first time.

For him personally, it was one of his better years, especially with the bat, as he made 372 runs from 17 matches at an average of exactly 31.

He may have been disappointed to have managed only one score over 50 while compiling a strike rate of 121.96, his lowest in the history of the tournament.

Let's take a look at his tournament in full and break down how things went for one of India's biggest stars in his home country's biggest tournament.

Matches	Runs	Batting Average	Strike Rate	Highest Score	4s	6s
17	372	31.00	121.96	53	27	17

Game 1: vs. Delhi Daredevils (April 9)

Against the Delhi Daredevils in his first game of the tournament, Dhoni hit 30 from 27 balls to start on the right foot for his side.

It was an innings that included one four and two sixes, and it helped the Super Kings win by just one run.

Game 2: vs. Sunrisers Hyderabad (April 11)

Just two days later, Dhoni made his highest score of the tournament against Sunrisers Hyderabad, as he hit 53 from just 29 balls.

It was vital to help Chennai win by 45 runs, as they got off to the best start possible.

Game 3: vs. Mumbai Indians (April 17)

After a six-day break, Chennai returned to action and won by six wickets over the Mumbai Indians.

Unfortunately, Dhoni made just three runs before Kieron Pollard caught and bowled him.

Game 4: vs. Rajasthan Royals (April 19)

Chennai batted first against Rajasthan and made 156 for four, with Dhoni scoring an unbeaten 31 from 37 balls.

However, the Royals chased down their target with ease to win by eight wickets.

Game 5: vs. Royal Challengers Bangalore (April 22)

The Super Kings got back to winning ways against Royal Challengers Bangalore to win by 27 runs, although Dhoni got a start but then got out.

He reached 13 from 13 deliveries batting at four, but AB de Villiers then caught him off the bowling of Yuzvendra Chahal.

Game 6: vs. Kings XI Punjab (April 25)

Chennai took a massive win by 97 runs over Kings XI Punjab in their next game, with Dhoni again to the fore with the bat.

He made 41 not out from 27 balls as his side reached 192, and then their bowlers totally overwhelmed the Punjab batsmen.

Game 7: vs. Kolkata Knight Riders (April 28)

Chennai won again against the Kolkata Knight Riders, this time by the small margin of just two runs.

However, Dhoni again failed with the bat to make just three runs before he was caught behind by Robin Uthappa off Andre Russell.

Game 8: vs. Kolkata Knight Riders (April 30)

Two days later, the teams played again, only this time, Kolkata won by seven wickets.

Dhoni again failed, as he made just one run before Piyush Chawla bowled him.

Game 9: vs. Sunrisers Hyderabad (May 2)

Sunrisers Hyderabad beat Chennai by 22 runs in their next match, although Dhoni saw something of an upturn in his fortunes with the bat.

He scored 20 from 16 balls as the Super Kings chased 193 to win, but it was not enough for them to avoid defeat.

Game 10: vs. Royal Challengers Bangalore (May 4)

Chennai got back to winning ways against Royal Challengers Bangalore in their next game, with victory coming by 24 runs.

Dhoni again did pretty well as he hit 29 from 18 deliveries in a supporting role that included two fours and two sixes.

Game 11: vs. Mumbai Indians (May 8)

Mumbai beat Chennai by six wickets in their latest game, and again Dhoni did pretty well with the bat in defeat.

He made an unbeaten 39 from 32 balls to help his side to 158, although the Indians overhauled that with relative ease.

Game 12: vs. Rajasthan Royals (May 10)

Against Rajasthan, Dhoni had very little time to make an impact with the bat, although his contribution turned out to be vital.

He scored 13 not out from seven balls as Chennai won by 12 runs over the Royals in a game dominated by the ball.

Game 13: vs. Delhi Daredevils (May 12)

The Delhi Daredevils beat Chennai by six wickets, but Dhoni managed to impress with the bat nonetheless.

The Super King scored 27 from 24 balls but could only help his side to 119, a target the Daredevils had few problems overhauling.

Game 14: vs. Kings XI Punjab (May 16)

Chennai beat Kings XI Punjab by seven wickets in their next game, and Dhoni was there at the end to help them home.

He scored 25 not out from 16 balls to take his side across the line comfortably alongside Suresh Raina.

Game 15: vs. Mumbai Indians (May 19)

In the first qualifying game of the playoffs, Mumbai beat Chennai by 25 runs as Dhoni had perhaps his worst innings of the season.

Former India team-mate Harbhajan Singh dismissed him from his first ball in what was a tough game for Dhoni.

Game 16: vs. Royal Challengers Bangalore (May 22)

Facing elimination, the Super Kings overcame Royal Challengers Bangalore by three wickets to reach the IPL final.

Dhoni made 26 from 29 balls, as it was left to Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin to lead Chennai to the win.

Game 17: vs. Mumbai Indians (May 24)

In the IPL final, Chennai fell short once again against Mumbai, this time by 41 runs.

Dhoni made 18 from 13 balls at four, but Lasith Malinga bowled him, and he was powerless as his side's batting collapsed.

Conclusion

It was a decent IPL 2015 for Dhoni, who only failed on a few occasions with the bat and often played some valuable knocks down the order.

However, he will be disappointed to have missed out in the final, especially when his side needed him the most and then crumbled without him.

That meant it was a difficult end to this year's tournament for Dhoni, who otherwise can reflect on a strong effort with the bat and in captaincy.

The Chennai Super Kings recorded the biggest total of the 2014 Champions League Twenty20 tournament as they crushed the Dolphins by 54 runs in Bangalore.

The 2014 Indian Premier League third-placed finishers made 242-6 in their 20 overs at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The South African franchise could only make 188 in their reply as they slipped to their second consecutive defeat in Group A.

Suresh Raina was the star for CSK, smashing eight sixes in making 90 from just 43 balls.

Suresh Raina completes 4,000 runs for @ChennaiIPL - first player to reach this mark for a single team in T20s. #DOLvsCSK #CLT20

— Rajneesh Gupta (@rgcricket) September 22, 2014

He put on 91 for the second wicket with Brendon McCullum (49) and 65 with Faf du Plessis (30) before being caught at point in the 15th over off Robbie Frylinck.

Ravi Jadeja gave the innings a late flourish by crashing 40 from just 14 balls.

		R	B	4s	6s
DR Smith	c Zondo b Maharaj	7	3	0	1
BB McCullum	c Smit b Zondo	49	29	5	3
SK Raina	c Delport b Frylinck	90	43	4	8
F du Plessis	c van Jaarsveld b Alexander	30	19	3	1
MS Dhoni*†	b Frylinck	0	1	0	0
DJ Bravo	c van Jaarsveld b Abbott	11	9	2	0
RA Jadeja	not out	40	14	3	3
R Ashwin	not out	4	5	0	0
Extras	(lb 4, w 4, nb 3)
Bowling		O	M	R	W
KA Maharaj		4	0	54	1
KJ Abbott		4	0	37	1
CJ Alexander		3	0	40	1
R Frylinck		4	0	52	2
AL Phehlukwayo		1	0	19	0
K Zondo		2	0	19	1
D Smit		2	0	17	0

However, the Dolphins started with a flourish, as Ashish Nehra’s opening over went for 20 and 56 came up off just three overs with Cameron Delport blasting 34 from nine deliveries.

Cody Chetty and Vaughn van Jaarsveld then picked up the mantle as the 2013–14 Ram Slam T20 Challenge winners reached 115-3 at halfway.

However, Dwayne Bravo had Chetty (37) caught at deep square leg with his second ball and wickets began to fall in quick succession, with Mohit Sharma finishing with 4-41.

		R	B	4s	6s
MN van Wyk*†	lbw b Ashwin	17	7	2	1
CS Delport	b Sharma	34	9	5	2
C Chetty	c Sharma b Bravo	37	28	3	2
KA Maharaj	b Sharma	8	8	1	0
VB van Jaarsveld	c Smith b Bravo	30	22	1	2
K Zondo	c Raina b Nehra	9	8	1	0
D Smit	run out (†Dhoni)	0	3	0	0
AL Phehlukwayo	b Sharma	22	17	2	1
R Frylinck	b Nehra	6	7	0	0
KJ Abbott	b Sharma	5	4	1	0
CJ Alexander	not out	16	7	2	1
Extras	(lb 1, w 3)	4
Bowling		O	M	R	W
A Nehra		4	0	42	2
R Ashwin		4	0	38	1
MM Sharma		4	0	41	4
RA Jadeja		3	0	35	0
SK Raina		1	0	14	0
DJ Bravo		4	0	17	2

Perth Scorchers, Kolkata Knight Riders and Lahore Lions, who came through the qualifying pool, complete Group A in the sixth edition of the event.

The top two will progress to the semi-finals with the tournament coming to a crescendo in Bangalore on October 4.

Chennai Super Kings look to rebound from an opening defeat in the Champions League T20 when they take on Nashua Dolphins, who also lost their tournament opener.

Venue: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore

Date: Monday, September 22

Start time: 3:30 p.m. BST, 8 p.m. local time

Live on: STAR Sports 1 (India), Ten Sports/PTV Sports (Pakistan), SuperSport (South Africa), Eurosport (UK/Europe), Sky Sports (New Zealand), Network Ten/Fox (Australia), Star Cricket (Sri Lanka), Star Cricket (Bangladesh), ESPN (USA and Caribbean), Willow Cricket (USA).

Weather: According to Weather.com, Bangalore may be in for some showers in the afternoon, which may make starting on time difficult. Temperatures are expected to peak at 30 degrees Celsius.

Overview

For Chennai, this game is an early shot at redemption after they lost their opening game of the tournament by three wickets against fellow Indian Premier League franchise Kolkata.

The Super Kings batted first and made 157, with all their batsmen getting starts but with none pushing on for a big score.

In reply, Ashish Nehra had the Knight Riders in trouble as he took 4-21, but they managed to get over the line for the loss of seven wickets.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins also lost their first game in the CLT20 to the Perth Scorchers by six wickets from the final ball.

Nashua batted first and made 164-7 from their 20 overs, led by Khaya Zondo, who made an unbeaten 63 from 50 balls.

In response, the South Africans had restricted their opponents to 153-7 from 19.4 overs, meaning Perth needed 12 from two balls.

However, Mitchell Marsh intervened spectacularly and hammered two straight sixes from their last two balls to take his side to 165 and victory.

Team News

Chennai Super Kings (from): Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Samuel Badree, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, John Hastings, Ravindra Jadeja, Brendon McCullum, Mithun Manhas, Pawan Negi, Ashish Nehra, Ishwar Pandey, Suresh Raina, Mohit Sharma, Dwayne Smith

Nashua Dolphins (from): Morne van Wyk (capt), Kyle Abbott, Craig Alexander, Cody Chetty, Cameron Delport, Daryn Dupavillon, Robbie Frylinck, Keshav Maharaj, Sibonelo Makhanya, Andile Phehlukwayo, Daryn Smit, Prenelan Subrayen, Jonathan Vandiar, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Khaya Zondo

Key Players

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

The Chennai Super Kings are once again going to be relying heavily on captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni with the bat and for his leadership skills.

If they are to be successful, Dhoni will need to be in top form, even in a strong and deep Super Kings lineup.

Kyle Abbott

With some international experience under his belt for South Africa, seamer Kyle Abbott will be key for the Dolphins.

If he can bowl economically with the new ball and restrict the Super Kings, the South African side will be in with a good chance of victory.

Chennai Super Kings' Mohit Sharma finds himself attached to a baffling statistic related to the Indian Premier League. In the 31 matches that he has played in the tournament over the last two seasons, he has only scored a single run.

For that matter, in his eight-match international career for India (five ODIs and three T20Is), he is yet to open his runs account. The postscript to these two bits of statistics is that he has faced a grand total of 13 deliveries in his international and IPL career.

Fortunately for the 25-year-old Indian medium-paced bowler, there are other numbers that he is better known for, and they do not involve holding a bat.

Sharma ended the 2014 IPL as the season's highest wicket taker, with 23 victims in 16 matches and a best of four for 14. Fifteen of those 23 wickets were taken in the month of May, making him an automatic pick for the bowler of the month.

Sharma kept up with the tradition of quick bowlers winning the Purple Cap in the IPL. Only in 2010 did a spinner, Pragyan Ojha, take the highest number of wickets in a season. Sharma joined a list that includes Sohail Tanvir (2008), RP Singh (2009), Ojha (2010), Lasith Malinga (2011), Morne Morkel (2012) and Dwayne Bravo (2013).

Sharma isn't the quickest of bowlers in the world by a long way. He manages to clock himself in the 130s but makes up for his lack of pace with a smooth delivery stride, unflinching line and length in the channel just outside off-stump from a decent height (5'11"), and a good outswinger to the right-handed batsman. He also has an unflappable slower one, which he admittedly uses a lot, according to this interview for the IPL's official website:

I use the slower one according to the batsman. There is also a knack of bowling that slower one and using it according to the situation. When the batsman is on a roll and trying to hit you outside the off-stump, you need to bowl the slower one at a proper line and length that could make it difficult for the batsman to connect. Dhoni bhai makes me understand all these things, like which batsman is moving which way and how I have to bowl my deliveries, which is of great help.  

Sharma is the man captain MS Dhoni goes to both in the power play and the death overs. There are times when he can go for a few runs, but his ability to maintain his cool is what sets him apart. During a game against Rajasthan Royals this season, Sharma erred and bowled a slow full toss to Shane Watson, who clobbered it for six over midwicket. Any bowler would have lost his composure, but Sharma went back and bowled a superb slower one that crashed into middle stump the very next ball.

Sharma's name first did the rounds in the Indian cricketing scene during the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy season, when he ended up as the sixth-highest wicket taker with 37 scalps in eight matches. The performance was good enough for him to be picked by Chennai Super Kings in the auction for the 2013 IPL.

Sharma made the CSK starting XI regularly all season and, soon, everyone knew his name as he went on to take 20 wickets in 15 games. He was to be rewarded with a call-up to the national squad during the one-day tour of Zimbabwe last year.

His international career has been restricted to eight limited-overs games, but from his performance in IPL 2014 he has proved that he isn't a one-time wonder. Sharma has been picked for India's tour of Bangladesh starting later this month and has the opportunity to knock on the selectors' door a little louder in order to be in contention for bigger series.

With the match very much in the balance at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Saturday, the Chennai Super Kings decided to rejig their batting order to get skipper MS Dhoni at the crease, and boy did the move pay off as the visitors strolled to an eight-wicket win with still more than two overs of the contest remaining.

However, as Chennai now contemplate the play-offs, the franchise must surely resist the temptation to drop Dhoni back down to his usual No. 5 position in the order if they want to make up for the heartbreak of being runners-up in each of the previous two editions of the Indian Premier League.

Too often in the past the Super Kings have appeared reluctant to make full use of their captain’s unrivalled abilities with bat in hand, as have India too at times in both one-day international and Twenty20 cricket.

And yet when MS is moved up the order, either on his own request or the management's, the results are there for all to see.

Think back to the 2011 World Cup final in Mumbai, for example, when Dhoni took it upon himself to see his side home after jumping up one place to No. 5 and scoring an unbeaten 91 from just 79 deliveries, as India chased down 275 for victory with 10 balls remaining.

But against the Royal Challengers Bangalore, with the visitors on 85 for two approaching the halfway point of their innings following the loss of key man Suresh Raina, and still needing another 60 runs for victory, out walked the wicketkeeper-batsman instead of David Hussey, who had batted at No. 4 in Chennai’s six-wicket loss to the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ku5NIrhhbUk

As was also the case in his man-of-the-match display at the Wankhede Stadium three years ago, Dhoni’s innings against Bangalore started slowly as he made a cautious four runs from his first 15 balls, before a seemingly serious-looking injury appeared to be the catalyst to the 32-year-old’s explosion into life.

That turn of his ankle actually seemed to free the big-hitting batsman up in actual fact, as Dhoni then broke a sequence of 33 deliveries without a boundary by paddle sweeping Yuzvendra Chahal for four.

And while the stumper was badly missed by his opposite number having made just 15, thereafter it was the MS Show, beginning with a savage attack on his compatriot Yuvraj Singh, who he smashed for 22 from the 16th over, including two massive sixes driven straight down the ground.

The 50-run partnership with Faf du Plessis soon followed off only 43 balls as the tide very much turned in Chennai’s favour, and from that moment on the result was a mere formality as first Dhoni muscled Mitchell Starc through the covers for four, before Shadab Jakati was then brought on to try to tame the beast.

However, to no avail as Dhoni, who by this stage was seeing it like a football, swept his first ball back for four, before then imperiously launching yet another one of his now characteristic straight sixes down the ground with that strong bottom hand of his.

Just for the record, Dhoni finished unbeaten on 49 from just 28 balls, with four fours and three sixes, as the Super Kings’ run-rate was catapulted up to 9.05 runs per over, and that is the effect of the man, he always manages to be able to lift the tempo and scoring rate whenever he marches out to the middle.

And that is also exactly why MS must bat in this exact same position when Chennai begin their attempts to win a third IPL crown in their eliminator at the Brabourne Stadium on Wednesday.

Follow @Richiereds1976

Chennai Super Kings moved to the top of the Indian Premier League table with a dramatic five-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals.

The 2010 and 2011 champions recorded their eighth win in 10 starts as they chased down 149 to win match 37 at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi.

Captain Shane Watson's 51 led the Royals to 148-8 in their 20 overs but they were unable to defend their total as MS Dhoni saw CSK home with two balls to go.

Watson shared a 60-run opening partnership with Ankit Sharma (30) before becoming the first of Mohit Sharma's three victims in the 13th over.

He hit four sixes in his 36-ball innings and, although Stuart Binny hit two maximums in his 22, the lower order were unable to maintain the momentum.

BATSMEN		RUNS	BALLS	SR	4S	6S
Ankit Sharma	c Dwayne Smith b Ravichandran Ashwin	30	27	111.11	4	1
Shane Watson	b Mohit Sharma	51	36	141.66	3	4
Ajinkya Rahane	run out (Brendon McCullum)	4	7	57.14	0	0
Karun Nair	b Samuel Badree	8	11	72.72	1	0
Stuart Binny	c Francois du Plessis b Ravindra Jadeja	22	17	129.41	0	2
Steve Smith	b Mohit Sharma	9	8	112.50	1	0
James Faulkner	b Ravindra Jadeja	1	4	25.00	0	0
Dishant Yagnik	NOT OUT	4	6	66.66	0	0
Rajat Bhatia	c Dwayne Smith b Mohit Sharma	7	4	175.00	1	0
Kevon Cooper	NOT OUT	0	0	0.00	0	0
EXTRAS	(w 8, b 1, lb 3)	12
BOWLER	O	M	R	W	ECON	DOTS
Samuel Badree	4	0	19	1	4.75	15
Ishwar Pandey	3	0	18	0	6.00	9
Mohit Sharma	4	0	31	3	7.75	13
Ravichandran Ashwin	4	0	39	1	9.75	5
Ravindra Jadeja	4	0	18	2	4.50	10
Vijay Shankar	1	0	19	0	19.00	1

CSK lost Brendon McCullum and Suresh Raina to Sharma during the powerplay but they still managed 48 in the opening six overs.

In-form Dwayne Smith missed out on his sixth half-century of the tournament but his 44 from 35 balls took Chennai to 76-3 at halfway.

The limping Faf du Plessis made 38 before being yorked by James Faulkner, which left the Super Kings needing 28 off the final 15 balls.

Ravindra Jadeja hit a six in the penultimate over to leave 13 needed off Faulkner's final over from which Dhoni hit the second ball for six before an overthrow sealed the win.

BATSMEN		RUNS	BALLS	SR	4S	6S
Dwayne Smith	c Dishant Yagnik b Kevon Cooper	44	35	125.71	5	2
Brendon McCullum	c Karun Nair b Ankit Sharma	6	3	200.00	0	1
Suresh Raina	c Rajat Bhatia b Ankit Sharma	2	3	66.66	0	0
Francois du Plessis	b James Faulkner	38	39	97.43	2	0
Ravichandran Ashwin	b Rajat Bhatia	14	16	87.50	1	0
MS Dhoni	NOT OUT	26	16	162.50	1	1
Ravindra Jadeja	NOT OUT	11	6	183.33	0	1
EXTRAS	(w 5, lb 3)	8
BOWLER	O	M	R	W	ECON	DOTS
Ankit Sharma	4	0	20	2	5.00	12
James Faulkner	3.4	0	37	1	10.09	6
Pravin Tambe	4	0	34	0	8.50	5
Kevon Cooper	4	0	25	1	6.25	8
Rajat Bhatia	4	0	30	1	7.50	6

Both teams are strongly placed to make the play-offs with Chennai facing Royal Challengers Bangalore on Sunday.