Presentation
There are a slew of awards to see through before we get down to the business of the captains and Man of the Match.
MS Dhoni : "In the final everybody knows their roles. It was good that we didn't lose too many wickets in the first half. Bhuvi is equally deceptive with the new ball. With Faf back we felt it was better for Rayudu to bat in the middle order. Difficult to compare title wins. Rayudu at 33, it doesn't matter. It's the fitness that matters, more than the age. Captains want players who are fit and agile on the field. Age is just a number. We will go back to Chennai tomorrow."
Dhoni receives the IPL trophy from CK Khanna. The others join in. This was a long wait! The speeches are done.
The curtains are down now on IPL 11. Fittingly, one of the returning teams has won it. Thanks for joining us. Goodnight!
Kane Williamson : "We thought it was a competitive total. Hats off to Shane Watson. We played some good cricket. CSK showed their experience. The guys are hurting at the moment and they showed some great character this season. When you have a bowling attack that can control the death overs, it's a great asset to have. It does come down to commitment by the guys in the roles they're given. They were a number of other leaders in the group."
Stephen Fleming, CSK coach : "We were lucky early on to get a good core group of players. We stayed pretty consistent. We were criticised at the start at the auction. It's one thing to pick players a little older, but we looked at professionalism."
Man of the Match is Shane Watson . That was a no-brianer. "Special season. Good that CSK gave me the opportunity after last year with the RCB. I scored none off nine balls so I'm glad I got the opportunity to catch up. (About his fitness) - I'm glad I don't have to play for a few more months!"
Emerging Player of the Season is Rishabh Pant: "Enjoyed the whole tournament. Last year I was trying to hit sixes and this year I was trying to play normal cricket."
Not exactly sure what he meant by that! Whatever it is, fans wouldn't want him to stop what he's doing.
Trent Boult's catch is voted the Catch of the Season. Boult is not in the country so Rishabh takes it on his behalf.
Andrew Tye of Kings XI Punjab is the Purple Cap holder for the most wickets.
Kane Williamson of Sunrisers Hyderabad is the Orange Cap holder for the most runs.
Tom Moody, SRH coach : "Shane was special tonight. We had a few setbacks early on with some players not available. It was not a bad thing for us to come back down to earth. Kane has shown the world he is just a 3-dimensional cricketer. Every team is in good hands under him. I don't think Rashid's got a boarding pass so I don't know if he's flying home. He's a special cricketer."
18.3 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 181 for 2 (Watson 117*, Rayudu 13, Raina 32) beatSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6 by eight wickets
Spot interviews:
Bravo : We had to regroups after being away for two years. Our experience counts.
Rayudu : Wicket looked slow but it became damp. It got easier.
Thakur : Top of the world. Was part of the final last year and didn't win. I knew I had to bowl well at the death overs.
Ngidi : Just taking it in. Great to be out there bowling at the death.
Harbhajan : In this ground when you have set batsmen anything is possible. Great to be an IPL champion for the 4th time (personally). SRH had a lot of right handers so Dhoni thought it would be better to bowl a finger spinner to Karn got his chance.
The presentation will follow.
The two-year wait was worth it after all for CSK and CSK fans. People are setting off crackers in Chennai as I write. A big thumbs up too for beloved fans from Chennai who took the special train to Pune to cheer their team for the remaining home games after Chepauk was dropped as a venue for security reasons.
SRH will be gutted that their consistency for most of the tournament didn't produce a title. But they still had the best bowling attack, the best spinner and arguably the most astute captain. It didn't come together in the final. That's the nature of the beast that is T20 cricket.
The CSK players are lined up and ready. After two dot balls, Rayudu hits the winning runs, past cover and CSK are IPL champions for the third time!
The CSK players rush out and Dhoni the Iceman is calm at the background. We're used to seeing MSD sealing it with a six, but today it was the turn of Rayudu who has also had a fine season. People laughed at "CSK's Oldies" at the auction, Watson being one of the surprise picks, but a lot have been made to eat humble pie.
18 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 177 for 2 (Watson 117, Rayudu 13) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Take cover! Full outside off and Watson bludgeons one just wide of the bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar who sticks his hand out and it beats him and long-off and races for four. He isn't done. Another one is smashed down the pitch, down everything and nobody bothers stopping that. One hit away CSK .
17 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 166 for 2 (Watson 108, Rayudu 11) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
A soft forward push to cover and Watson brings up his century! His second of the season, his fourth IPL ton. The first in a chase in an IPL final . The previous was by Wriddhiman Saha but that was in a losing cause - Kings XI vs KKR, 2014.
Bowler Saneep Sharma celebrates after dismissing du Plessis, Chennai Super Kings Vs Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Photo: .
A paddle sweep for four takes CSK closer and closer.
16 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 154 for 2 (Watson 98, Rayudu 9) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Rayudu getting into the act and CSK making this chase look ridiculously easy here. Bhuvneshwar back into the attack and Rayudu picks the slower ball early, comes down the pitch and smashes it over long-off for a six.
15 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 146 for 2 (Watson 97, Rayudu 2) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
LBW appeal by Rashid Khan and he's given not out and SRH review it. Rayudu played the googly close to the pad and it was pad first. But the ball was missing off stump so SRH lose a review
14 overs -Chennai Super Kings - 145 for 2 (Watson 97, Rayudu 2) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Wicket down but Watson not done yet. He gently dabs Brathwaite to third man for a four and then pulls to deep midwicket for a six. Within striking distance of a century.
WICKET - Short ball from Brathwaite from round the wicket and Raina ducks and looks very uncomfortable as he tried to fend it off to the leg side, the keeper is confident that was a catch and the umpire says not out. SRH review it and ultra edge shows a very slight edge off the glove. Raina had started walking
Raina c Goswami b Brathwaite 31
13 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 131 for 1 (Watson 86, Raina 31) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Sandeep gets taken to the cleaners by Watson here. A low full toss is scooped over the covers for four. Then Watson pulls a short ball for a huge six over long-on. Then a full toss is deposited even high over long-on. But wait, Watson's not done yet as he claims a hat-trick of sixes sending this one rows back over long-on. They should give helmets to the crowd there. The final ball (after a wide) is squeezed out wide of short third man for four. Phew! 27 off that over
12 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 104 for 1 (Watson 60, Raina 31) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Brathwaite comes on. An overthrow costs another single and this is frustrating for SRH. A short ball is pulled for fout to the wide open spaces at square leg.With so many wickets in hand, CSK have the edge at this stage
11 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 95 for 1 (Watson 53, Raina 29) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Watson redeems himself with a fifty, and brings it up with a trademark slog sweep for six off Shakib al Hasan. This partnership might be getting SRH a little worried. Raina ends the over with quite an effortless six over long-on
10 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 80 for 1 (Watson 45, Raina 22) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Was shaping up to be another quiet Rashid over till the last ball, which he strayed down the leg side and Raina managed to sweep for four
9 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 72 for 1 (Watson 43, Raina 16) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Kaul doesn't seem to be having a good night so far. Watson sends one high and clears long-on. Then an excellent effort in the deep by Rashid diving forward. The next ball was full and wide and Watson almost landed it over the rope at long-off. The fun continues as Watson lofts over the off side and 3 fielders run after and somehow the ball lands between all of them
8 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 56 for 1 (Watson 28, Raina 15) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Rashid Khan now, with one slip. The batsmen don't try anything risky by just playing out singles. Kaul has been SRH's weaklink so far after that one expensive over.
7 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 51 for 1 (Watson 26, Raina 13) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Siddarth Kaul comes on. Watson plays a glorious pick-up shot for a six over square leg and it's a crowd catch. Watson gets his placement right again as he hits in the air and the ball lands between two fielders. Raina swivels and pulls for a four down to fine leg. CSK gaining some momentum here. And Raina repeats that again with another swivel pull to fine leg. Poor over from Kaul
6 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 35 for 1 (Watson 19, Raina 4) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Watson pulls one in front of square, a fielder stops it with one hand at the boundary. His name is Rashid Khan. Made that look simple. But Watto has other plans as the over goes on. Biffs a short one over deep midwicket and then bashes it down the ground wide of mid-off. Appeal for a run out after they scamper a leg bye but Raina dives and makes his ground. The Powerplay ends with CSK at 35.
5 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 20 for 1 (Watson 7, Raina 2) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
What a fine start this is by SRH. Just four off this over by Bhuvi, all singles. Watson retains the strike. Raina joins him. CSK need a move on so much depends on Raina.
4 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 16 for 1 (Watson 5) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Watson in desperation to get off the mark tries to slog one away off Sandeep and is nearly given out lbw. Missing leg as it swung in a bit too much. But Watto has a fitting response the following ball crunching it down the ground
WICKET - du Plessis goes to a skier! SRH have their man who tormented them in the playoff. Faf failed to pick the knuckle ball from Sandeep, down the track, top edge and the bowler himself does the honours. These high catches under lights are not simple.
du Plessis c and b Sandeep 10
3 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 10 for 0 (Watson 0, du Plessis 10) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Bhuvneshwar is persisting with that line that's keeping du Plessis quiet as well. No room at all to hit it anywhere and late movement making the batsmen cautious. Something's got to give. A run at last - make that five! Overthrows for four, after du Plessis takes a quick single to point. Bhuvi is peeved, 'thanks a ton fellows!' Nevertheless, another top over
2 overs - Chennai Super Kings - 5 for 0 (Watson 0, du Plessis 5) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
Faf du Plessis gets CSK up and running with a crispy punch wide of cover for four. Sandeep Sharma comes back well later in the over by not giving Watson room. Watson scoreless for 8 balls.
1 over - Chennai Super Kings - 0 for 0 (Watson 0, du Plessis 0) vsSunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6
The openers are out. Can SRH defend 178? Will CSK make it 4-0 against them this season? The chase begins.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowls a beauty outside off to beat Watson first ball. Reminds me of his spells in SA where he regularly beat the bat. Tucks him up for room after that. Four dot balls as Hooda does brilliantly at point to save a few runs. Fifth ball is slapped straight to that man Hooda again. Bhuvi saves his best for the last ball as the ball kicks up and has Watto all at sea. Maiden over, ladies and gentlemen.
20 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 178 for 6 (Williamson 47, Yusuf 45*, Brathwaite 21)
Thakur to bowl the final over. Chance for a run out as Pathan mistimes the ball just wide of the pitch, Brathwaite sets off and he has to scamper back as the striker is not interested. Thakur thinks about hitting down the stumps but stops short. Four runs off the first four balls as Brathwaite fails to read a knuckle ball and swings and misses. The fifth was clubbed over long-on but it just about clears the rope for a six.
WICKET - Brathwaite tries to repeat the six off the previous ball but he doesn't time this one as well, skier taken at wide long-on
Brathwaite c Rayudu b Thakur 21
19 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 168 for 5 (Yusuf 42, Brathwaite 15)
Brathwaite mistimes a slog and one more skier drops in front of the fielders at long-on. Ngidi doing well in the death overs with his slower balls. Just two off five balls. Brathwaite fails to pick on and he swings at thin air. But a final-ball six spoils the over for Ngidi as Brathwaite connects and swings it over wide long-on.
Kane Williamson is stumped by CSK captain MS Dhoni
34 runs off the last three overs.
18 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 160 for 5 (Yusuf 41, Brathwaite 8)
No sighters for Brathwaite as he deposits his first ball for a six over long-off. The Bravo slower ball isn't working. A yorker is squeezed out to point who does well to dive and stop a four. Brathwaite mistimes one that drops well short of two guys in the deep on the on side. Pathan however biffs one down the ground and it beats long-on running across.
17 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 144 for 5 (Yusuf 35)
WICKET - Sending Hooda above Brathwaite hasn't worked. He clips a slower ball from Ngidi down to deep square leg who takes it comfortably.
Hooda c Shorey b Ngidi 3
Before the wicket, Pathan muscled one over long-on for six.
16 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 134 for 4 (Hooda 1, Yusuf 27)
Yusuf starts yet another over with a boundary - this time a short ball is smashed wide of deep cover for a four. Bravo's lengths getting predictable. Bravo does well to charge to his left to stop the ball and rhere's some hesitation in the running.
WICKET - Shakib gets his placement spot on - to the fielder! Bravo gets away with a full toss, Shakib makes room and smashed it straight to cover who takes it low and falls back
Shakib c Raina b Bravo 23 (15 balls)
15 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 126 for 3 (Shakib 22, Yusuf 21)
Tossed up by Karn and in the slot for Pathan to get forward and loft it over wide long-off for a six! Shakib made room to slog and it was much slower and he missed it. Gets his back foot back in time before Dhoni breaks the bails. Shakib down the track and he slips after driving so turns down the single there.
14 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 117 for 3 (Shakib 20, Yusuf 14)
Thakur returns. Can he bowl the knuckle ball to contain Yusuf? One was too short outside off which Yusuf cut to deep point for a four. No slip so Shakib dabs it away easily even if cramped for room. Yusuf pulls the final ball but finds deep midwicket.
13 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 108 for 3 (Shakib 18, Yusuf 7)
Clever bowling by Karn and he gets the Big Fish Kane Williamson!
WICKET - Karn sensed that Williamson was going to use his feet so he deliberately bowled it wide outside off and made him reach for it. It was a leg spinner and wide of the bat and Kane just didn't have time to make it back.
Williamson st Dhoni b Karn 47
Yusuf Pathan walks in and second ball he dabs it wide of slip and Ngidi chases but the ball wins.
12 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 101 for 2 (Shakib 18, Williamson 47)
Williamson finds that gap between deep cover and long-off as well with a strong front foot drive. Bravo bowls one shorter and Kane pulls it to deep midwicket for a four. Bravo struggling with his length here. Surprisingly, a full toss only fetches a single. Over ends quietly after those boundaries.
11 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 90 for 2 (Shakib 17, Williamson 37)
Flat and quick by Jadeja. Close call for Williamson as he gets an outside edge that spoons up towards short third man and Ngidi moves to his right and dives in vain. The ball rolls away for four. Shakib meanwhile picks the length early and swats a six on his knees over deep midwicket. If that wasn't enough, Shakib slogs another one and this one bisects two fielders on the on side for a four.
10 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 73 for 2 (Shakib 6, Williamson 32)
Chahar retuens for his final over. Taking the pace off the ball and bowls a slower short ball and Kane fails to get bat on ball. Single to long-on and Chahar finishes an impressive spell 4-0-25-0.
9 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 70 for 2 (Shakib 5, Williamson 30)
Dhoni shuffling his bowlers like a card player here. It's Jadeja now.
Sunrisers Hyderabad players form a huddle before the start of the Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 final match beween Chennai Super Kings Vs Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
WICKET - Jadeja comes over the wicket to Dhawan and he keeps it flat on the stumps, Dhawan sizes up to swot it to the leg side but plays too early and the ball crashes onto the stumps.
Dhawan b Jadeja 26 (25 balls)
Shakib walks in and begins with a very satisfying cut to third man for a four. That didn't take long.
8 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 62 for 1 (Dhawan 25, Williamson 28)
Now it's the turn of DJ Bravo. Bouncer down the leg side and Dhawan tries to pull and nearly gloves it. Bravo and Dhoni think of reviewing it but the captain isn't so sure. Ultra edge shows nothing. A slower ball is picked up early by Williamson who lofts it wide of deep extra cover. And that's well caught!.. by the ball boy beyond the rope at fine leg! Slower ball and a friendly full toss which Kane laps it away easily.
7 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 51 for 1 (Dhawan 24, Williamson 18)
Spin now and it's Karn Sharma. Brace yourselves for more spin this match as this pitch was predicted to be a bit slow. Karn keeps it flat and straight. Dhawan gets in position early for the sweep and he plays it square and places it wide of fine leg, lovely shot. Down the track and the final ball is forced to long-on.
6 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 42 for 1 (Dhawan 18, Williamson 16)
Thakur comes on, replaces Ngidi who just bowled a maiden. Interesting. He feeds a length ball for Dhawan who happily tonks it over wide long-on for a big six. Single to third man to end the over and with it the Powerplay. I think CSK will be pretty happy with this.
5 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 30 for 1 (Dhawan 9, Williamson 14)
Williamson breaks the shackles with a hook off Chahar that clears fine leg. The batsman advances down the pitch the next ball and dabs it to the off side. Fourth ball is too short and gentle and the New Zealander pounds it to deep midwicket for a four. Then Chahar bowls a bouncer but it was too high. Williamson continues to charge down but can only find mid-off.
4 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 17 for 1 (Dhawan 8, Williamson 3)
Ngidi bowls with control too, stump to stump. No runs off the first four balls. Kane is feeling restricted. Fifth ball is wide outside off and Williamson chases it, bowler almost penalised there. Sixth is driven forcefully and cover does well to dive and stop. A maiden over! That's gold dust.
3 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 17 for 1 (Dhawan 8, Williamson 3)
Chahar gets the ball to swing in to the left-hander. Dhawan takes singles to the on side. Quick single by Williamson who pushes one towards point. End of a fairly tight over.
2 overs - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 14 for 1 (Dhawan 7, Williamson 1)
Boundary from Ngidi's second ball. Good over so far from Ngidi apart from the boundary. Good throw from Karn Sharma, run out, excellent work from M.S. Dhoni. First wicket for Chennai Super Kings, Goswami out for 5.
1 over - Sunrisers Hyderabad - 6 for 0
Chahar begins with a waist high full toss to Dhawan and we have a Free Hit!Dhawan hits it to long-on but it doesn't carry.They steal a quick single to point but Raina fumbles.
The teams stand for the national anthem.
SRH have defended totals really well this season. How much can CSK restrict them to? The openers take guard. Deepak Chahar will open the bowling.
Toss and teams
MS Dhoni has won the toss and CSK will bowl first . This was after some confusion over who called heads, but it was just Dhoni fooling around!
One change for CSK - Karn Sharma comes in for Harbhajan Singh. Two for SRH - Saha is injured so Shrivats Goswami comes back. Ibrahim Khaleel makes way for Sandeep Sharma.
Sunrisers Hyderabad : Kane Williamson(Capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Shreevats Goswami, Shakib Al Hasan, Deepak Hooda, Yusuf Pathan, Carlos Brathwaite, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul, Sandeep Sharma.
Chennai Super Kings : Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Capt), Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar, Karn Sharma, Shardul Thakur, Lungi Ngidi.
Pitch
Very dry surface, says Michael Clarke. Captains should look to bowl first and spin could be the biggest factor. If that's the case then Rashid Khan would be itching to bowl right away.
The toss will follow shortly.
First, they were banned for two years due to the spot-fixing scandal involving their owner. Once it was lifted, they were told they couldn't play at their beloved home ground in Chepauk for political reasons, far removed from cricket or sport in general. After just one 'home' game, they had to adjust to a new home base but their fans hopped on special trains to cheer them on. Rewind a bit - they were laughed at for picking a team of over-30s in what is known as a young man's format. Now, they are in the IPL 2018 final. That's Chennai Super Kings's journey for you.
Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Kane Williamson and Chennai Super Kings captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni pose with the IPL trophy before the final
The most consistent team in the history of the IPL takes on Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai tonight. It's fitting that the two best sides of IPL 2018 are in the title clash. CSK have the head-to-head edge, having won all three games so far. SRH lost a game they had in their grasp in Qualifier 1 (against CSK) but they tactically outsmarted Kolkata Knight Riders in the second Qualifier to make it to Mumbai. SRH have the best bowling attack among the eight teams and they have demonstrated it by defending low totals. Their topm performers this season have been Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan and Siddharth Kaul.
If CSK win it will be their third title. For SRH, it will be their second title and third overall for a Hyderabad-based franchise, adding the 2009 title by the now defunct Deccan Chargers.
Head-to-head in IPL 2018
In the first match between these two sides, in Hyderabad, CSK posted 182 thanks to Ambati Rayudu and Suresh Raina. SRH looked out of it but gave CSK a scare thanks to some big hitting by Yusuf Pathan and Williamson. CSK prevailed by four runs. The second meeting was all about Rayudu as his unbeaten 100 helped CSK chase down 180 with ease. The third was a thriller, at the Qualifiers. Chasing a relatively low 140, CSK slipped and looked like folding up but Faf du Plessis kept his cool and guided his team home with 67, supported by some invaluable boundaries by the tail-enders.
IPL finals down the years
From 2008 to 2017, here's a look at how the title clashes turned out.
Super Kings has several match-winners
What makes Chennai Super Kings the most consistent team in the IPL? We asked L. Balaji
It’s time for Rashid to sustain a difficult art
Rashid Khan has been bamboozling batsmen in the Vivo IPL-11. He’s gird up his loins for another run in with the Chennai Super Kings, which boasts of a 3-0 record this season; in the immediate past contest against CSK at the Wankhede, he deceived its captain M.S. Dhoni, but the yellow brigade’s Faf du Plessis had the last laugh.
Preview
When Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings, the teams that finished at the top of the league standings of the Vivo-Indian Premier League, met at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday, it was billed ‘a battle between captain cool Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his cooler counterpart Kane Williamson’.
