Sam Billings is a champion in the making: Kris Srikanth

The love affair of CSK with the IPL continues. It would seem as though CSK 2.0 has returned with a bang that has sent a strong message to the other franchises. Franchisees know that CSK can never be ruled out of the game until the last moment as they have the capability of bouncing back and pulling off highly unlikely victories.

Gem of an innings

For the 11th edition, the franchise chose to go with experienced players as most of them are above the age of 30. In their opening game against Mumbai Indians, Dwayne Bravo stole the show with some beautiful bowling and breathtaking strokes to take his team over the line and pull off a cliffhanger. In their second game against KKR, they were on the back foot again but found a new hero in Sam Billings. The English player silenced the KKR fans with some lusty blows as he scored 56 off just 23 balls to take his side home.

Former Indian captain Kris Srikanth believes that Billings has the capability of becoming champion and is a great buy for the franchise. “We have already witnessed some amazing efforts with the bat in season 11 but none better than the match-winning knock of 53 from Sam Billings. Widely expected to open, the Englishman made the middle order his own.

For someone who did not grow up playing spin, the class and ease with which he handled the spinners was a treat. The flick off Piyush Chawla will forever remain in my memory. Add the crowd pressure and the occasion, it was a massive effort and it looks like the former winners have unearthed a champion,” Srikkanth was quoted as saying by timesofindia.indiatimes.com.

Russell’s efforts eclipsed

Andre Russell played a gem of an innings that included 11 sixes and 1 four. He took KKR’s total to 202 and it seemed that CSK has leaked 20-30 runs extra at the back end of the innings. But Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu provided a great start to the home team and set the platform for the chase. CSK were 101/3 in the 12th over when Billings walked to the crease. He smashed five sixes and two fours to take his team closer to the total. Dwayne Bravo and Ravindra Jadeja ensured that Sam’s efforts did not go in vain.

Billings, 26, was purchased by CSK for Rs 1 crore at the IPL players’ auction in January. He had earlier played for Delhi Daredevils, scoring 226 runs in 10 innings with two fifties. CSK currently lead the IPL 11 points table with two wins in a row. The face Kings XI Punjab in the next game on April 15.

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