After 44 days of exciting cricket, the final match of the inaugural DLF Indian Premier League (IPL) was finally here. A brilliant 1-hour closing ceremony that involved a potent mix of acrobatics, pyrotechnics and performances by popular faces of the Indian film industry got viewers into the mood for a good game ahead in the final. At the toss, Shane Warne called heads and called it right. He decided to field as has been his policy throughout the tournament, probably doing so to test the Chennai batsmen on a seemingly uneven track with slightly lower bounce than the Wankhede.
Chennai got off to a very sedate start; just 16 runs came off the first 3 overs. Some risky shots and a few lucky edges to the boundary off the bat of S Vidyut (16) helped Chennai to 39 from 5.1 overs before he sensed the need to go after Yusuf Pathan. Vidyut danced down the track to a fast, flat ball and pulled towards mid-wicket where an agile Ravindra Jadeja came in running and took an astounding catch diving right in front of him. Pathan had drawn first blood for Rajasthan and looked absolutely pumped. This was the big stage and Pathan had responded to the call of duty by captain Shane Warne.
Parthiv Patel (38) continued from where he had left off in the semi-final against Kings XI Punjab, playing the role of the opening anchor. His stay at the crease came to an end when wonder-boy Pathan once again darted in a flat, fast ball on off-stump and Patel glided out of the crease and tried to drive it to third man. Unluckily, he got a faint edge and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal almost made a mess of it before diving to his right and completing the catch with a sharp effort.
Pathan continued to bowl a tight line and kept the run-rate down. The flat, fast ball seemed to be the golden ball of the day as he got big hitter Albie Morkel (16) to play an awkward pull that went in the air behind the wicketkeeper. Akmal and Mohammed Kaif at short fine leg both went for it but got into a messy tangle; albeit Akmal managed to pouch the ball. Pathan’s impressive figures read 4 overs, 22 runs and 3 wickets.
Suresh Raina (43) too continued his impressive form in the tournament and struck the ball sweetly right from the beginning. His 30-ball knock of 43 came to an end in the 17th over when he tried to accelerate the scoring and skied a full ball straight down Jadeja’s throat at long-off. Chamara Kapugedara followed him to the middle but he did more harm than good to his team’s cause, scoring just 8 runs off 12 balls, that too at the death. Dhoni (29), however, did a decent clean-up job at the end, getting 33 runs off the last 3 overs.
The Chennai Super Kings had put forth a target of 164 runs before Rajasthan Royals - very defendable yet very gettable. Niraj Patel and Swapnil Asnodkar, both having the time of their lives in the tournament walked in to open the innings for the Royals. The start was steady; 19 runs came off the first 3 overs. Soon, Manpreet Gony got Patel (2) out clean bowled but that didn’t stall the pint-sized Asnodkar from doing what he has done throughout the tournament - whack the ball out of the park. Just when it looked like they were in a comfortable position after 6 overs, Albie Morkel got danger man Asnodkar (28) out, and after three balls Kamran Akmal was run out for 5 while attempting a non-existent run. Hope still thrived when two of the Royals’ best performers came out in the form of Shane Watson and Yusuf Pathan. The duo stitched together a 65-run partnership in just 45 balls and at that stage, it looked like they would guide the Royals home easily.
The wily Muralidaran got Watson out for 28 with 35 balls still to go and 57 runs still to get. This situation however didn’t deter Pathan and he kept hitting sixes when the required rate was just about to get out of hand. Once again, when it looked like the match was out of Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s hands, Mohammed Kaif (12) was snapped up at cover by the Chennai captain himself off Murali’s bowling. Young Jadeja (0) who came in next couldn’t hold his nerve and pulled one high in the air, only to be caught by Kapugedera at mid-on. Suresh Raina produced a brilliant direct hit from point later in the same over and the in-form Yusuf Pathan (56) was on his way back.
The match was deliciously poised at this point and it could have gone any way. But Shane Warne (9) and Sohail Tanvir (9) held their nerves till the last ball, got the 20-odd runs required and justified topping the League in the group stages by pulling it off. If anything, the Rajasthan Royals were deserving winners.
Yusuf Pathan was adjudicated as the Player of the Match for his 3 wickets and half-century, while Shane Watson was Player of the Series without a doubt for his superlative all-round display in the Twenty20 extravaganza.
After starting as underdogs, without any popular support prior to the tournament, without any big players in their side and being led by a retired international player, they have truly proved that strength of character triumphs well above anything else. What a true fairytale this journey has been for the Royals!
Shane Warne has given us a glimpse of what a great captain he could have been for Australia and also, has saved India the work of scouting talent. Every single player in his squad is a gem and a player worthy of playing on the international stage. MS Dhoni has done a stellar job of leading Chennai in this tournament and the entire team deserves credit for being half the reason for a thrilling finish to a brilliantly organized tournament. The IPL is truly here to stay!
Rajasthan win inaugural IPL!
The Rajasthan Royals have won the inaugural edition of the IPL in a thrilling last ball ending. Batting first, the Chennai Super Kings put on 163 runs for the loss of 5 wickets largely due to contributions by Parthiv Patel (38), Suresh Raina (43) and Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (29*).
Chasing 164 for victory, the Royals got off to a steady start but went on to lose three quick wickets such that they were struggling at 44 for 3 after 7 overs. However, Yusuf Pathan (56), who had earlier taken 3 wickets for 22 runs in the Super Kings’ innings had other plans and displayed some cool temperament, hitting sixes almost at will when the pressure started mounting.
Handy contributions came from the bats of Shane Watson (28) and Swapnil Asnodkar (28). Just when it looked like they would cruise to an easy win, some close run-outs took it right down to the wire and with 12 runs required off the last 7 balls, skipper Shane Warne and Sohail Tanvir held their nerves and sealed the win with the winning run coming off the last ball. It truly was a fitting finish to a thrilling tournament that has engrossed the attention of the entire world.
.jpg)
.jpg)