IPL 9, Match 53 Review: Dhoni special wins it for RPS

The Kings XI Punjab and the Rising Pune Supergiants battled it out to avoid the wooden spoon in the tournament. The match between these two bottom placed teams was going to be inconsequential and no wonder why it did not generate much interest among the viewers. However, for the two franchises, it was about restoring their pride with a consolation win and not ending on the last spot.

Having won the toss, the Kings XI skipper Murali Vijay opted to bat first. Surprisingly, though, at the toss, Vijay quoted 140 to be a par score on the wicket. Openers Murali Vijay and Hashim Amla took the attack to the RPS bowlers and plundered 52 turns in the powerplay. It was Ravichandran Ashwin who got rid of Amla for 30 (27) in the 8^th over of the game.

The spinners got turn on the surface and Adam Zampa made full use of it to have Wriddhiman Saha (3) caught in the slips in the very next over. Gurkeerat Singh Mann joined the skipper at the crease and the two players settled the Kings XI innings. They put 58 runs for the 3rd wicket in 43 balls before Vijay perished in his attempt to slog sweep Ashwin in the 16th over. Before getting dismissed, Vijay had brought up his 5th half century of the season. He was dismissed on 59 (41) with 4 fours and 3 sixes.

How did Twitter react through the game? – Twitter Reactions: Dhoni and Rising Pune Supergiants finish things off in style

An over later, Gurkeerat brought up his half century as well but soon became Ashwin’s 3rd scalp of the day. He scored 51 off 30 balls with 3 fours and 3 sixes. A delivery later, Ashwin got the wicket of David Miller, to complete his quartet for the night. He finished with figures of 4/34 in his 4 overs. By the end of 20 overs, the Kings XI posted a total of 172/7.

The Rising Pune Supergiants began their run chase cautiously with their openers putting up 34 off 28  balls for the opening stand. Ajinkya Rahane gave a simple catch to Saha in the 5th over. He was dismissed on 19. George Bailey came at number 3 but could manage just 9 off 11 balls before being stumped on a delivery by Axar Patel. Saurabh Tiwary showed some promise with a six and a four but perished on 17 that came off 15 balls. Irfan Pathan followed soon with 2.

In the end, it came down to the old horses MS Dhoni and Thisara Perera to take RPS over the line. With 70 needed off the last 5 overs, it was always going to be an uphill task. The duo kept the home side in the chase with spectacular shot making. Dhoni took 15 of the 18th over by Sandeep Sharma to bring the equation to 29 needed of the 12 balls. However, the first ball of the penultimate over by Mohit Sharma got rid of Thisara Perera. Perera’s cameo of 23 came in 14 balls.

Mohit Sharma gave just 6 runs in the 19^th over. Needing 23 of the last over, Dhoni was the man under severe pressure. The best was yet to come as he smashed 23 off the last over by Axar Patel and won it handsomely for the Rising Pune Supergiants. Dhoni was phenomenal throughout the innings and almost single-handedly won the match for his side. He remained unbeaten on 64 off 32 balls with 4 fours and 5 sixes. RPS won by 4 wickets.

Brief Scores:

Kings XI Punjab: 172/7 in 20 overs (Vijay 59, Ashwin 4/34)

Rising Pune Supergiants: 173/6 in 20 overs (Dhoni 64*, Gurkeerat 2/15)

Man of the match: MS Dhoni