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Preview : M37 - CSK vs RCB
04 May, 2015
Preview : M37 - CSK vs RCB
04 May, 2015
What
Match 37 of Pepsi IPL 2015 will be a South Indian derby; two-time IPL champions Chennai Super Kings will be up against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
CSK have been seated in the top half of the table for most part of the season. However, heading into this match, the team has lost two games on the bounce and will be keen to arrest the slide. In their most recent outing against Sunrisers Hyderabad, several of the batsmen got starts, but none went on to make a big score and as a result CSK fell short of their target of 193 by 22 runs. It is still only two matches, but the team will be worried about the form of the fifth bowler. Though Pawan Negi has seamlessly settled into the void created by the absence of the injured R Ashwin, the fact that one of the frontline bowlers has gone for plenty of runs recently should worry the team management.
RCB are on an upswing. After three consecutive defeats, the team is now unbeaten in their next four matches; they beat DD, RR and KKR, while the home fixture against RR was washed out by poor weather. In their most recent outing, RCB chased down a stiff target of 112 in ten overs. RCB have steadily made their way up the standings, and buoyed by the thrilling win in the previous match will be keen to continue their upward climb.
When
04 May 2015, 4p.m. IST
Where
MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai
The Protagonists
The highest score by a Chennai Super Kings batsman in the last two matches has been 33. That is an area the CSK top-order – comprising Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith and Suresh Raina – will attempt to rectify in this match. The trio form the nucleus of CSK’s batting plans and will be expected to play the big innings.
At the start of the season, RCB captain Virat Kohli spoke about how the squad’s composition afforded him, Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers to play with a lot of freedom. With the middle order coming to the party in the previous two matches, it certainly gives the top three plenty of freedom to express themselves in the middle. T20 is mostly about runs, and if one or more of Kohli, Gayle or de Villiers get going, RCB could walk away with the match with ease.
Contests to look-forward to
There is a bit of a rivalry between Mitchell Starc and Brendon McCullum. The Australian left-arm quick, who now plays for RCB, dismissed the Kiwi batsman, now in the CSK lineup, for a third-ball duck in the final of the World Cup 2015. When the two teams squared off earlier this season, they didn’t run into each other too many occasions; off the three balls McCullum faced from Starc, he scored four runs, which included one boundary.
The other interesting battle that could materialise if the CSK off-spinner R Ashwin has recovered from injury and returns to the CSK XI, is his battle against the RCB opener Chris Gayle. Yuzvendra Chahal, who dismissed McCullum, Suresh Raina and MS Dhoni in the previous match, will look to repeat the feat again.
Previous Meetings
CSK have a 10-7 win-loss record from 18 matches against RCB. In matches in Chennai, CSK have an outstanding record, winning five of the six matches against RCB.
When these two teams met in Bengaluru earlier this season, CSK rode on Suresh Raina’s half-century and a blitz from Faf du Plessis (33 not out from 18 balls) to set the hosts a target of 182. Ashish Nehra then took charge dismantling the RCB top order, eventually returning with career-best figures of 4 for 10. RCB could only muster 154 in their twenty overs, finishing 28 runs short.
Trivia
The average first innings total in IPL matches at the MA Chidambaram Stadium is 167. In the four matches played at the venue this season, the first innings totals have been 150-7, 209-4, 192-3 and 134-6.
The Chennai Super Kings have batted first in all the four Pepsi IPL 2015 matches played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
RCB captain Virat Kohli has scored more runs against the Chennai Super Kings than against any other IPL opponent; in 17 IPL innings against CSK (which includes six half-centuries), he has scored 646 runs at a strike-rate of 128.42.
In the four matches at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai so far this season, the CSK spinners have altogether picked up nine wickets and have an economy rate of 5.12. Spinners from visiting teams have picked up seven wickets, but have leaked runs at an economy rate of 7.97.
What Next
Chennai Super Kings’ next fixture: Vs. Mumbai Indians in Chennai, 8 May 2015.
Royal Challengers Bangalore’s next fixture: Vs. Kings XI Punjab in Bengaluru, 6 May 2015.
