Chennai Super Kings made an impressive start to their Champions League campaign, as they secured a victory over the Titans from South Africa.
Putting the opposition in to bat, Chennai were set an imposing target to win the game, but they made a challenging total look far easy to attain, than it really was.
Suresh Raina and Michael Hussey in particular, and in the later stages of the innings, Dwayne Bravo, batted with an assurance that never left the outcome in any doubt. The four wicket victory, being secured with seven balls left of their allotted 20 overs.
AB de Villiers provided the backbone to the titans innings, striking seven sixes and three fours in his 36-ball innings. His stay at the crease coming to an end in the penultimate over, when he had scored 77. His half century being completed off of just 27 balls.
He shared a second wicket stand of 76 with his captain, Henry Davids, who himself smashed 52 off of just 43 balls, with two sixes, but looked pedestrian alongside de Villiers.
Just when it looked like the Titans might pass the 200 mark, Dwayne Bravo put the brakes on, taking two wickets in the 18th over and holding a skier in the next over, offered by de Villiers off Ravindra Jadeja. Apart from that wicket, Jadeja went for 49 runs in his three overs, later followed by a two-ball, to complete a miserable day.
Super Kings made a poor start, with M Vijay bowled in the first over. But the Titan’s bowlers were wayward after that, and Raina and Hussey were able to play their shots freely.
The pair added 89 together for the second wicket at more than 12 an over before Raina fell after making 47 off 28 balls with two sixes and five fours. Hussey fell just three short of his fifty, his 47 taking a mere 26 balls, with seven fours and a six.
Bravo and S Badrinath added 58 for the fourth wicket, before Bravo’s dismissal, which was quickly followed by Dhoni and Jadeja, before Albie Morkel struck the winning runs 19th over.