IPL 2018, Match 17, CSK vs RR - Chennai Super Kings Player Ratings

The Chennai Super Kings made a very happy arrival at their new home venue for the season. They hosted the Rajasthan Royals in a marquee clash between the two returning sides of the season at the MCA Stadium, in Pune. The match, against all expectations, ended up being a one-sided affair. Given the fact that both sides had come in to the game riding on defeats from their previous games, many expected the two sides to be highly competitive on the day.

While this spirit and hunger to win was pretty much evident in the Chennai Super Kings camp, there was a clear lack of intent in the Rajasthan Royals camp. As things turned out on the day, it was a tame one-sided affair on the cards for the fans. Having been asked to bat first, the hosts posted a mammoth 204 runs on the board in the 20 overs. Shane Watson was the chief architect of the innings with 106 to his name. This was his third IPL ton.

Watson was well supported by Suresh Raina and Dwayne Bravo in the innings. Later in the game, the Royals could never really get in to the run chase. They found themselves playing the catching game for most part of the match. Despite some brief resistances from Jos Buttler (22) and Ben Stokes (45), the Rajasthan Royals eventually bundled out for 140 in 18.3 overs to hand the hosts a comprehensive 64 run win.

Here are the Chennai Super Kings player ratings for the match:

Ambati Rayudu – 2/10

Ambati Rayudu got off to a promising start on the day. He hit a couple of boundaries up front but then ended up giving his wicket. Rayudu scored 12 off 8 deliveries during his short stay at the crease. He added valuable 50 runs for the first wicket for the Super Kings.

Shane Watson – 9.5/10

Shane Watson was the main man for the hosts in the game with the bat. Watson never really let the opposition bowlers settle down. He smashed a brilliant 106 off just 57 deliveries with 9 fours and six sixes to his name. He played through the innings and perished on the penultimate ball of the innings. Later, with the ball in hand, he bowled very well to return with numbers of 1/13 in three overs. He dismissed K Gowtham in the match.

Suresh Raina – 8/10

Suresh Raina walked back in to the side after having missed out on playing the previous game. He came at the expense of Murali Vijay in the side. Raina looked in sublime form on the day and played a very good knock of 46 runs in just 29 deliveries. He played the ideal support to Shane Watson in the Chennai Super Kings innings.

MS Dhoni – 2/10

When MS Dhoni arrived at the crease, he created a lot of ripples with a boundary straightaway. The fans at the venue thought they were in for a special. But Dhoni’s stay was cut short by Shreyas Gopal. Much to Dhoni’s defense, it was a power hit that was very well taken by K Gowtham at the boundary ropes. Dhoni scored 5 off 3 balls in the match.

Sam Billings – 1/10

Sam Billings seems to have gone off the radar a bit after his match winning knock a couple of games ago. He has got his chances to bat at the fag end of the innings but the Englishman has largely disappointed with the bat in the last couple of matches. He was dismissed on 3 in this particular game and he became the third victim of Shreyas Gopal in the match.

Dwayne Bravo – 7/10

Dwayne Bravo played a very handy camoe towards the end of the Chennai Super Kings innings. He scored a quick unbeaten 24 off 16 deliveries with four boundaries to his name. Later in the game, Bravo scalped 2/16 in the two overs that he bowled. He got the key wickets of Jos Buttler and Rahul Tripathi.

Ravindra Jadeja – 3/10

Ravindra Jadeja did not have a lot to do in the match. He did not get a chance to bat since the CSK top order did all the scoring. Later, he was given just one over to bowl in which he conceded 6 runs. It is surprising to see someone like Jadeja getting just one over per match.

Karn Sharma – 4/10

Much like Jadeja, even Karn Sharma did not get a chance to bat. Also, he got only 1.3 overs to bowl. But unlike Jadeja, Karn made it count and ended up scalping 2/13 in the 9 balls that he bowled. He cleaned up the RR tail to wrap the game for his side.

Shardul Thakur – 6/10

Shardul Thakur was very impressive with the ball in the game. He finished with figures of 2/18 in the three overs that he bowled. He provided the first breakthrough for the Super Kings in the match by dismissing Heinrich Klaasen. Later, he came in to the attack to get rid of Stuart Binny.

Imran Tahir – 4/10

Imran Tahir was the most expensive bowler for the Chennai Super Kings in the match. The veteran spinner was taken away for 44 runs in the four overs that he bowled on the day. However, he took the big wicket of Ben Stokes in the match. Stokes could have taken the game away from the hosts but Tahir got his wicket just at the right time.

Deepak Chahar – 8/10

Deepak Chahar bowled exceptionally well with the new ball. He got the ball to swing both ways and that did not let the Royals batsmen get set at the track. He dismissed Sanju Samson, the in-form batsman, and then accounted for the big wicket of Ajinkya Rahane. He returned with figures of 2/30 in his four overs.

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