CSK will finish in the top 2 in spite of Punjabs trashing victory !!!

R Ashwin won the toss and elected to field first in their final game of the season.

CSK lost Watson in the powerplay but Faf Du Plessis and Raina coming off a 50 in the previous game combined for a 130 runs partnership. They were off to a cautious start on a very good batting pitch as they just got 79 from the first 10 overs. They started to accelerate after that as both Faf and Raina looked in good touch. As they were looking to hit top gear in the final 4 overs, they kept losing wickets as they were not able to get the big finish they always look for. Shami who bowled the final over was hard to get away giving just 5 runs to go with 2 wickets as CSK were restricted to 170 in the 20 overs. Faf Du Plessis got a very well made 95 from 55 balls and Raina got 53 of 38 balls. They would feel that they could have accelerated slightly earlier and could have got a few more runs.

Kings XI Punjab started off the chase with KL Rahul starting off in full flow. He got to 50 off just 19 balls. The opening pair added 108 runs in just 10.3 overs and this partnership took the game away from CSK. Pooran coming in at number 3 kept the momentum going as he smashed 36 from just 22 balls and they won comfortably with 2 overs to spare. KL Rahul top scored with 71 off just 36 balls which made this a very easy chase for the Kings XI Punjab.

CSK in spite of losing will still qualify in the top 2 which should give them the advantage to play at Chennai. But they will still worry about their bowling attack in flat pitches which they may face in the eliminator or Finals.