Sam Curran, the allrounder of Chennai Super Kings, went all guns blazing against SunRisers Hyderabad and hit three fours and two sixes in his whirlwind knock of 31 which came off only 21 balls while opening the batting for the first time. Sam Curran has scored 99 runs and taken nine wickets in IPL 2020 so far.
He bowled well too returning with figures of 1/18 in three overs as the match became a memorable one for the 22-year-old. MS Dhoni referred him as a complete player as CSK beat SRH by 20 runs to return to winning ways.
Sam Curran Is A Complete Cricketer: MS Dhoni
After opener Faf Du Plessis was dismissed without scoring in the very first ball he faced, Sam Curran went on a rampage before being dismissed with the score at 35/2 in the 5th over. Seasoned campaigner Shane Watson scored 42, and Ambati Rayudu scored 41 as they took the score to 116 in the 16th over by stitching an 81 run partnership.
They lost both the batsmen within four runs and lost skipper MS Dhoni(21) and Dwayne Bravo(0)too with the score at 152 in the first ball of the 20th over, but Ravindra Jadeja ensured they managed a respectable total of 167/6. Ravindra Jadeja scored 25 off 10 balls and remained unbeaten.
“A lot depended on the fast bowlers. I just told them to be expressive on the field and hit their areas. There are some two paced balls, some swing and some don’t swing, some get extra bounce. What was needed was good execution of the plans and that was done by the fast bowlers,” Dhoni said after the match.
“We used an extra spinner because an Indian batter hasn’t done well for us. That’s why Sam Curran went up and it wasn’t fair on Jagadeesan as well to bat at seven or eight. Sam Curran is a complete cricketer for us. You need a seaming all-rounder, he plays the spinners well and he can give us those 15-45 runs,” he added.
Narayan Jagadeesan didn’t play as CSK went with an extra spinner, Piyush Chawla. Imran Tahir and Mitchell Santner again missed out. In reply, SRH batsmen failed apart from Kane Williamson who scored 57 off only 39 balls.
MS Dhoni: CSK Had Posted A Par Score
Karn Sharma and Dwayne Bravo picked up two wickets but were a bit expensive. Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran picked one wicket each.
“Ultimately what really matters is you getting two points. What T20s have shown is that there are a few games that don’t go your way and then there are some that go your way even when you haven’t earned it. Today I felt we did a very good job even in the batting. There was some purpose with the bat and the batsmen assessed the situation very well,” Dhoni said.
“With a total like 160, it all depends on the start you get in the first six overs. The fast bowlers did the job, the spinners came into play and it was one game that was as close to being perfect. It was a par score and I usually assess scores after the first six overs. If there are mis-fields in the first six overs then a par score becomes an under-par score.”
CSK now are placed 6th with six points having won three and lost five in eight matches. SRH have the same statistics but are ahead due to better Net Run Rate. CSK face 2nd placed Delhi Capitals while SRH will face Kolkata Knight Riders next.