Mohali: Not in a mood to leave anything to chance, table toppers Chennai Super Kings would be gunning for a win against bottom-placed Kings XI Punjab in their last league match to seal their place in the play-offs of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, here tomorrow.
CSK are presently leading the eight-team points table with 16 points from eight wins out of 13 games, and a victory tomorrow would guarantee their place in the top two.
But a loss against Kings XI can jeopardise CSK’s play-off hopes because as many as five teams are breathing down their neck and in that scenario the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side’s fate will depend on the outcome of the remaining league matches.
Kolkata Knight Riders are placed second in the standings on 15 points from 13 games, followed by Sunrisers Hyderabad (14 points which from 12 games), Mumbai Indians (14 points from 13 games), Rajasthan Royals (14 points from 13 games) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (13 points from 12 games), and all these teams are in with a chance to make it to the play-offs.
The only two teams that are out of the reckoning are Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI.
The CSK thinktank would be a worried lot coming into the match as they suffered a six-wicket defeat against Delhi Daredevils in their previous match earlier this week in Raipur.
In that match, despite having big names like Dwayne Smith, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina, Faf du Plesis, skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo, CSK’s batting fell by the wayside and could only manage 119 for six against Delhi’s determined bowling attack.
PTI
