Class is infectious. At least, Delhi Daredevils, inspired by the presence of Kevin Pietersen and Mahela Jayawardene in its ranks, showed that on Tuesday as it wiped out its all-loss record against Chennai Super Kings at home with an emphatic eight-wicket win at the Ferozeshah Kotla. The inspired performance from Daredevils was a tribute to its two star players, joining the side for its third match. Besides, the convincing win — which propelled the host to third spot with four points — was a big morale booster for the side which had finished with a wooden spoon last year. Daredevils' authoritative victory can be gauged from the fact that it restricted CSK to 110 for eight and then overhauled the target with 6.4 overs to spare. To bring an ideal finish to the script, Pietersen and Jayawardene were the batsmen who saw Daredevils home.
Poor running
Daredevils, which elected to field following a delayed start due to unseasonal rains, gained from the CSK batsmen's poor running between wickets and below par shot selection.
Murali Vijay became the victim of Faf du Plessis's poor call as the visitors lost its first wicket without registering a run on the board.du Plessis (15) struck three well-timed boundaries, including two fine off-drives, to make an impression.
His end came sooner than expected as he drove straight to Roelof van der Merwe at extra cover off Morne Morkel's first ball.Raina (17), who hit two sixes, flattered to deceive.
His effort to steal a quick single proved fatal as Yogesh Nagar, at point, moved swiftly to his left to run the CSK batsman out.S. Badrinath was the third CSK player to be run out.
Pietersen's throw from short fine leg was good enough to catch the reliable batsman short.
Irfan's first
Two runs later, CSK was dealt another blow. Ravindra Jadeja, its match-winner in its previous engagement, departed as wicketkeeper Naman Ojha dived to his left to complete a spectacular catch. That was Irfan Pathan's first wicket of IPL V.With the need to steady the boat, Dwayne Bravo and captain M.S. Dhoni adopted a watchful approach as Daredevils spinners vander Merwe and Shahbaz Nadeem kept them a tight leash.
However, when Dhoni decided to speed up the scoring rate in the 17th over, he was caught at long-off off Morkel. With his discipline, the tall South African speedster, who was adjudged the man of the match, made full use of the damp track to emerge as the best among the home bowlers.
Easy chase
The run-chase was a cakewalk for the host. Naman Ojha started with three consecutive boundaries off Albie Morkel to signal Daredevils'sintent.
Skipper Virender Sehwag (33) launched some awe-inspiring shots before the star foreign pair made a mockery of the CSK bowling.
The classy Jayawardene (20 not out) relied on his timing and placement, while Pietersen (43 not out) displayed glimpses of his firepower.
The Englishman was not hesitant in resorting to his controversial switch hit even though he was at ease in clobbering the ball all around the park.
Scoreboard
Chennai Super Kings: F. du Plessis c van der Merwe b Morkel 15 (12b, 3x4), M. Vijay (run out) 0 (0b), S. Raina (run out) 17 (16b, 2x6), S. Badrinath (run out) 15 (16b, 1x4, 1x6), R. Jadeja c Ojha b Irfan 13 (17b, 1x4), D. Bravo b Yadav 22 (31b, 1x4), M.S. Dhoni c Jayawardene b Morkel 11 (18b), A. Morkel (not out) 2 (3b), R. Ashwin (run out) 8 (5b, 1x4), S. Jakati (not out) 1 (2b), Extras ( b-1, lb-1, wd-4) 6, Total (for 8 wkts, 20 overs) 110.
Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Vijay), 2-26 (du Plessis), 3-43 (Raina), 4-64 (Badrinath), 5-66 (Jadeja), 6-89 (Dhoni), 7-100 (Bravo), 8-108 (Ashwin).
Delhi Daredevils bowling: Irfan 4-0-25-1, Yadav 3-0-24-1, M. Morkel 4-0-19-2, Pietersen 2-0-16-0, van der Merwe 4-0-15-0, Nadeem 3-0-9-0.
Delhi Daredevils: N. Ojha (run out) 14 (12b, 3x4), V. Sehwag c Vijay bAshwin 33 (21b, 3x4, 1x6), K. Pietersen (not out) 43 (26b, 3x4, 2x6), M. Jayawardene (not out) 20 (21b, 1x4), Extra (lb-1) 1, Total (for two wkts, 13.2 overs) 111.
Fall of wickets: 1-32 (Ojha), 2-50 (Sehwag).
Chennai Super Kings bowling: A. Morkel 2-0-24-0, Bollinger 2-0-18-0, Ashwin 3.2-0-21-1, Jakati 3-0-23-0, Jadeja 2-0-19-0, Bravo 1-0-5-0.
Man of the Match: M. Morkel.
