Chennai leave it late but down Rajasthan

On another sweltering day, there was another demonstration of how quickly Twenty20 games can turn. With four overs to go, Chennai Super Kings had nine wickets remaining and needed 31 runs – a one-sided game then by Twenty20 standards. A double-strike from Kevon Cooper in the 17th over made the Chennai dressing room a little anxious, but with MS Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo in the middle, things were still under control. Amit Singh leaked runs in the next over, and when he bowled a legstump freebie with the fine leg up, the game again seemed over. There were no more boundaries in the game, however, and with Karnataka allrounder Stuart bowling yorker after yorker in the final over it came down to two off the final delivery. Yet again, though, Dhoni gave showed his finishing skills, whipping the final ball to deep backward square leg and haring through for the second, easily beating a poor throw from Cooper. Rajasthan Royals managed 146 on a slowish pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. The cornerstone of the innings was Owais Shah’s third half-century of the tournament, but it lacked the panache of his previous two efforts, leaving Chennai Super Kings with a target they will fancy chasing.