The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) faced a letdown when they lost at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. SRH defeated them easily, winning by six wickets on April 5.
The Men in Yellow had a dismal performance from the opening of the match and were always chasing the game. The Super Kings made a few amateur errors in both innings, which they had previously done and suffered the consequences for.
Ruturaj Gaikwad and his team have lost consecutive matches in the competition and must break their losing streak before it is too late. They are still third, but that might change shortly if a midtable logjam develops.
Here are three obvious errors made by CSK during their IPL 2024 encounter against SRH.
1. CSK sent in Ravindra Jadeja at No. 5
Shivam Dube’s dismissal by Cummins in over 14 dealt a huge blow to CSK’s ambitions for a substantial score. Though faced with adversity, they had options like sending Moeen Ali, Daryl Mitchell or MS Dhoni. Surprisingly, they opted for Ravindra Jadeja instead.
That’s a move that rarely works nowadays. Jadeja’s hitting has been below standard for multiple seasons, particularly when he is toward the top of the order. And the southpaw disappointed once more, scoring 31 runs off 23 balls while remaining unblemished.
If Dhoni or Moeen had been given more time to settle in, they may have scored more runs at a faster rate than Jadeja. It’s hard to establish, but the probabilities were clearly higher.
2. Ruturaj Gaikwad’s Side Falters in Exploiting Batting Powerplay
SRH sprinted out of the gate on the second inning powerplay, knowing they needed to take advantage of the best batting phase. Scoring in the middle overs was always going to be difficult on that pitch, and the home team knew it.
CSK, on the other hand, took an entirely incorrect strategy. The Super Kings scored only 48 runs in their first six overs, and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad played very few aggressive strokes. Even Ajinkya Rahane, who hit a six off Cummins, defended the remainder of the over.
Chennai’s sole chance of reaching a match-winning total was to maximize the powerplay and put the SRH bowlers under strain in the middle overs. They did not do it for the first time this year, and they suffered the consequences. Gaikwad, in particular, disappointed with his intentions.
3. Moeen Ali’s Late Entry and Misplacement at Slip Costly for CSK
Moeen Ali has been known to lose catches when standing in the slips with MS Dhoni. Nonetheless, he was placed there in his debut IPL 2024 match against SRH and missed a straightforward catch that would have sent Travis Head back in the first over.
That was hardly the only incorrect use of the English all-rounder. Moeen was introduced as the sixth bowler and did not enter the attack during the powerplay, when Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma smashed the ball all around the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
If Gaikwad had bowled Moeen to two left-handers during the powerplay, he would have had more speed in the middle overs, where cutters and bouncers were successful.
