Chennai, April 9 (IANS) Hosts Chennai Super Kings (CSK) posted 150/7 in their 20 overs against Delhi Daredevils (DD) in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium here on Thursday.
CSK skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s (30) and his Indian teammate Ravichandran Ashwin (12 not out) guided the team to the modest total after the home team struggled to force the pace throughout their innings.
CSK’s hope for a strong start got an early jolt when New Zealand’s World Cup hero Brendon McCullum (4) was dismissed in the second over.
Newly-married India batsman Suresh Raina (4) also didn’t last long.
Some tight bowling by Daredevils kept the Chennai batsman on a tight leash. CSK’s desperation to break the shackles got the better of them and after reaching their 100 in the 13th over, they lost wickets at regular intervals.
South African Faf du Plessis’ (32) dismissal triggered the downslide. His untimely dismissal, coupled with opener Dwayne Smith’s (34) in the ninth over, meant that CSK’s batting momentum was broken.
Delhi Daredevils opted to bowl after winning the toss.
Daredevils went in with South Africans trio of skipper Jean Paul Duminy, Albie Morkel and Imran Tahir and Austrlian Nathan Coulter-Nile as the four overseas players.