Super Kings now two from two after defeating Sunrisers
Saturday 11 April 2015 21:27, UK
Brendon McCullum thumped the first IPL century of the season to fire Chennai to a 45-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad.
McCullum (100 not out) made just four in the Super Kings’ triumph over Delhi on Thursday but bounced back with a sparkling 56-ball innings on the same pitch on Saturday, clubbing nine sixes and seven fours as Chennai posted 209-4.
Sunrisers could only reach 164-6 in response as Mohit Sharma – the top bowler in the 2014 IPL with 23 wickets – and Dwayne Bravo pocketed two scalps apiece, but it was McCullum’s pyrotechnics that set up back-to-back wins for the IPL’s most successful franchise.
The New Zealand skipper and Dwayne Smith (27 from 26 balls) came racing out of the traps at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, putting on 75 for the first wicket in eight overs before Smith was run out by a direct hit from Trent Boult.
McCullum continued the onslaught, though, and, after playing a multitude of ramp shots over Sunrisers wicketkeeper Naman Ojha, brought up the second ton of his IPL career off the final ball of Chennai’s innings, nudging countryman Boult away for a single.
Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni (53 from 29) produced some powerful hitting of his own after promoting himself to No 4, whacking four maximums and four fours before he was caught out by opposition captain David Warner.
Sunrisers bowlers Ishant Sharma (0-46 from three overs) and Karn Sharma (0-51 from four overs) had days to forget, but England’s Ravi Bopara gained respectable figures of 0-29 from his four overs of military medium pace.
Hyderabad – who left England’s one-day skipper Eoin Morgan and South Africa quick Dale Steyn out of their side to face Chennai – opened their reply with skipper Warner and Shikhar Dhawan, two stars of the recent World Cup.
Dhawan biffed five fours in an 18-ball 26 but once he plinked Mohit to Ravindra Jadeja at backward point, Hyderabad could not get hold of the Super Kings’ attack in a sun-baked Chennai, home spinner Ravichandran Ashwin shipping just 22 runs from his four overs.
Warner (53 from 42) pummeled a trio of sixes and a solitary four but his exit, to a fine catch in the deep by Smith, extinguished any hopes of a Sunrisers win, although Bopara (22 from 15) did drill a pair of maximums in an entertaining cameo.
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