IPL 2019: Qualifier 1, MI vs CSK – Kishan-Jadeja rivalry history cost Chennai the game

The Mumbai Indians outplayed the Chennai Super Kings across departments in the game that granted direct entry into the final. The table-toppers rotated their spinners effectively and managed to emerge on top even against MS Dhoni the batter. Defending a total of 131 is always a tough task for any team in T20s but CSK did fancy their chances with a potent spin attack especially on a turning Chepauk track. However, Suryakumar Yadav put his hand up and used his skill to defy quality spinners and took MI through to the final.

Sir needed to deliver:

After Mumbai’s experienced opening pair got out early, Chennai Super Kings had the perfect chance to push the pressure on MI making use of the resources in hand. Ravindra Jadeja was expected to be the X-factor given the square turn that was on offer from the pitch. However, CSK used only one over from Jadeja in the initial 12 overs.

Even Dwayne Bravo got more exposure in the first 12 and thus not trusting Jadeja looked baffling. In fact, Suryakumar has a not so great record against the Saurashtra left-arm spinner. The Mumbaikar had got out twice in 26 balls scoring 15 runs in the T20s against Jadeja. By the time Jaddu was brought back, MI’s required RR was under six and all Suryakumar had to do was rotate the strike.

The Ishan K-Ishan factor:

The main reason for holding Ravindra Jadeja back seems to have been the presence of Ishan Kishan at the crease. The keeper-batsman has had a pretty good record in the domestic matches against Jadeja. The youngster from Jharkhand has nearly scored at a SR of 100 against this left-arm spinner in first-class matches. In the Ranji Trophy meetings, Ishan scored 85 from only 86 balls with 8 fours and 4 sixes.

Across all formats, Jadeja has conceded 101 runs in only 97 balls with 16 boundaries to Ishan and dismissed him twice. Moreover, Kishan had clear intentions of going for the big shots when he first faced Harbhajan Singh in the powerplay. Had Dhoni continued Jadeja from one end, Kishan could have easily taken the game away from the hosts and helped MI get into the finals little early.

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