IPL 2021, SRH vs CSK: Chennai eases past by 6 wickets to seal playoffs berth, Hyderabad knocked out

Chennai Super Kings has dominated against Sunrisers Hyderabad to win by six wickets in IPL 2021. CSK has sealed its playoffs berth, while SRH has been knocked out.

It was a dominating performance by former champion Chennai Super Kings (CSK), as it breezed past fellow former champion Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by six wickets in the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Thursday. With this win, CSK has booked its place in the playoffs, while SRH has been knocked out.

Winning the toss, CSK skipper MS Dhoni elected to bowl as he made a change, bringing in Dwayne Bravo for Sam Curran. Meanwhile, SRH skipper Kane Williamson maintained the same side.

SRH was off to a shaky start, losing Jason Roy (2) in the fourth over to pacer Josh Hazlewood for 23. At the same time, Williamson (11) departed 20 runs later to leg-spinner Ravindra Jadeja in the seventh.

The SRH batters lacked true partnerships and kept departing after every 20 odds runs. It lost a couple more by 74, in the form of Priyam Garg (7) and Wriddhiman Saha (44), despite the latter looking promising with his batting.

While a 35-run stand between Abhishek Sharma (18) and Abdul Samad (18) ensued, both fell in the seventh over to Hazlewood by 110. Seven runs later, Jason Holder (4) also departed to pacer Shardul Thakur in the 19th, as Rashid Khan's unbeaten 17 ensured a score of 134/7 for SRH.

CSK put six bowlers into the attack, with Hazelwood claiming 3/24, his best IPL figures. In the meantime, Bravo turned out to be the most economical of all.

As CSK came out of the chase, the openers Ruturaj Gaikwad (45) and Faf du Plessis (41) were off to a ruthless start, contributing 75 runs for the opening wicket before the former fell to pacer Jason Holder in the 11th over. However, it was followed by a 28-run stand, as Moeen Ali (17) departed next to leg-spinner Rashid Khan in the 15th over.

The following over saw Suresh Raina (2) fall at 107 to Holder, while just a couple of runs later, du Plessis departed in the same over. Although SRH did manage to bring the equation close in the final couple of overs, Ambati Rayudu (17*) and Dhoni (14*) held their nerves, while the latter finished it off in style, courtesy of a monstrous six to pacer Siddhart Kaul. SRH utilised six bowlers, with Holder claiming three, while spinner Abhishek had the best economy.
Brief scores: SRH 134/7 (Saha-44; Hazlewood- 3/24) lost to CSK 139/4 in 19.4 overs (Gaikwad- 45, du Plessis- 41; Holder- 3/27) by six wickets.