Ahmedabad, April 19: It was not the usual MS Dhoni at the batting crease and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) were not at their best. And as a result, they were routed by Rajasthan Royals (RR) by 8 wickets here today at Sardar Patel Stadium.
; Match Report; IPL Special
In Match 15 of the Indian Premier League 2015 (IPL 8), RR produced a top-class performance to chase down 157 convincingly, in 18.2 overs. Captain Shane Watson (73 off 47) and Ajinkya Rahane's (76 not out off 55) record 144-run opening partnership guided them to a 5th straight win of the season.
Dhoni, who is one of the best finishers in the limited overs format, struggled today even as his partner Dwayne Bravo blasted his way to a half century.
The skipper was unbeaten on 31 but took 37 balls and managed only 4 boundaries. At the other end, Bravo remained undefeated on 62 off 36 with 8 fours and a six. The duo rescued CSK from 65/4 in 9.1 overs to 156/4 in 20. The duo added 91 for the unfinished 5th wicket partnership.
Speaking after the match, Dhoni admitted that he played too slowly. "We started well but I went in and ate up a lot of deliveries," he said referring to CSK's innings.
"It was an off day for us," he remarked as CSK's 3-game unbeaten run was halted today at RR's homeground. Dhoni also said it was a "quite good wicket" and got better under the lights.
OneIndia News