The fact that Narain has been barred from the playing XI for the
CLT20 final, must have made CSK believe to come through to lift the trophy one
other time during this final clash over their arch rival KKR on Saturday. At
the same time, this ban must have come as a huge blow to KKR as it looks
forward to secure an extended winning streak to 15. I have been a close
observant of Gambhir's captaincy who has been having 4 spinners for his comfort
this season with the likes of Naraine, Piyush Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav and
Pathan - Naraine being the leading wicket taker.
I am great fan of having spinners to start off the bowling attack. I
remember Dhoni using Ashwin in the initial IPL tournaments. Full credit to
Gambhir – he has been astute of employing spin as his main weapon. Yes, he has
quickly understood the weakness of his oppositions and attacked with the
spinners from the first ball. Once the opposition lost 2-3 wickets in their
initial 6 overs, Gambhir had the option of introducing the likes of Kuldeep Yadav
or Chawla to further demoralize the opposition. Here is where I sincerely
believe that Dhoni missed the trick in the IPL matches when Bravo was absent and
during the current CL matches by not bringing on Badree and instead went ahead
with the deadly combination of 4 foreign bat hitters. And I was pleasantly
surprised him bringing Negi in the semi-final clash as the 3rd spin attack
option. And with this spin attack option, I strongly believe that he has his
playing XI right. Negi's 2 wickets at the right time, proved decisive for CSK.
KKR team has been in their peak form right from
their 1st match. But what needs to be noted is that they have not
been tested with their full strength. If CSK posses 180 plus on board, batting
first, it will be a sure curtains for KKR team, as CSK’s current bowling options
and hence its attack is a killer to any strong opposition like KKR.
I am also in awe of the fact that CSK was able to prove how strong a
team can be by scoring 182 in their semi-final clash against Kings XI Punjab with
Dhoni, McCullum, Smith and Suesh Raina totaling only 26 runs between
them. With CSK peaking at the right time, odds are definitely in favor of
them.
My Playing XI:
CSK: Mccullum, Smith, Raina, Faf du Plesis, Bravo,
Jadeja, Dhoni, Negi, Ashwin, MM Sharma, Ashish Nehra
KKR: Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Kallis, Manish
Pandey, Pathan, Surya Kumar, ten Doeschate, Russel, Chawla, Kuldeep Yadav and
Umesh Yadav/Pat Cummins
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