CSK vs PBKS Highlights, IPL 2021: KL Rahul hits unbeaten 98 as Punjab Kings steamroll Chennai Super Kings to stay alive

Wow! And this is a T20 match, of the IPL, against a team like Chennai Super Kings. Shami's graph continues to rise and it's been a brilliant start from Punjab Kings. Five overs gone and CSK have been able to hit just one boundary.

WICKET! Arshdeep gets Gaikwad, who miscues a pull shot and falls for 12. CSK 18/1 in 3.5 overs. The ball hurries on to Gaikwad, trying to break free off the pressure inflicted by some disciplined bowling from Punjab Kings. Tries to hoick but no timing at all.

Mohammed Shami operating at a probing line. Nothing Gaikwad and du Plessis could do than dab the ball around for singles. Faf goes for a scoop but fails the connect. Shami is mounting pressure on one of the best opening pairs of IPL 2021. 

Left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar starts the second over and Gaikwad immediately takes him on. No look ins for him as he heaves the ball on the leg side. Poor effort from the fielder and the ball goes past the boundary. First four from CSK and Gaikwad.

Rapid pace from Shami. Gaikwad tries to walk down the pitch but Shami pitched it short and the ball pinned the batsman on his gloves. The ball lobs in the air but falls in no man's land. Just three runs off the first over. 

Four balls, two singles and two dots. That's how tight Mohammed Shami has begun. The IPL has always brought out the best in him and he's proving it once again.

Here we go. The players have made their way into the ground and we are minutes away from the start of play. Mohammed Shami with the new ball, up against two in form batsmen in Gaikwad and du Plessis. 

Gaikwad and du Plessis have been two of the more consistent batsmen for CSK. And here on a hot Dubai day, the onus is on them to get the team off to a flyer. They have done so earlier in the tournament and another strong start here could go a long way in CSK going back to winning ways. 

"The feeling is good, this is an important game for us. Everytime we play, every game against every opponent, it's important. In a tournament like IPL, you are bound to lose a few games on the run. Having said that, we are very proud with the way we go about in this campaign, especially in the second leg. This game is another important game, we want to challenge ourselves as a team to make sure we bounce back from the last game and go into the knockouts with a win under our belt. I use my experience, depending on the stage of the game I come out to bowl or whenever I am going to bat I allow the scoreboard to dictate how I play and what I need to do at that point in time. This ground, one side is bigger than the other, depending on the end I bowl on, I will know what line and length I want to bowl. For me it's about how the game unfolds on that day, then I come up with my own personal game-plan."

"We will bowl first. That is one of the reasons why we are bowling first as we can have a look at the permutations and combinations to look at. The middle order has tried their best and hasn't delivered at times. They are all quality players and performed for their respective tams."

Suresh Raina misses out again as MS Dhoni informs about an unchanged Playing XI for CSK. And it is on expected lines. Like Ajit Agarkar rightly pointed out, don't think there is anyone on the bench who can make this team better than what it already is.

And KL Rahul has decided that he would bowl. Just one change for them with all-rounder Chris Jordan coming in for Nicholas Pooran.

“First of all we need to win to give ourselves any chance and then we need to win quite handsomely to increase our Net Run Rate and then rely on other results,” says all-rounder Moises Henriques, and we couldn't agree more.

"It's hot, hot, hot. Very hot. So that's something to pay attention to. It's pitch number three, so that means there is a 60m boundary on one side, the other side much longer, 73m. As far as the surface is concerned, 185 should have been chased down coincidentally by Punjab Kings. 134 chased down comfortably. It's a good surface. Batters will enjoy this."

The camera has panned to KL Rahul and MS Dhoni, who are gearing up. Rahul is doing his batting drills, while Dhoni casually walks into the ground hoping to catch a look of the pitch. Jadeja joins him and the two are playing a little footy out in the middle. Two defeats in a row? Not a problem for them. They know the kind of cricket they have played this year.

We are into the last half an hour before the toss takes place. Remember, the last five matches, the team chasing has won.

KL Rahul has been in red-hot form, but barring Mayank Agarwal to some extent, no other batsman has really stepped up this the skipper. Although it is too late, Rahul wouldn't mind a few decent scores from his batsmen.

Not usual territory this for CSK, two defeats in a row. Sure, they have qualified for the Playoffs alright, but MS Dhoni will be keen to dispose DC off the top of the points table.

- The last 5 matches at Dubai in IPL 2021 have been won by team batting second.

- This could be the 100th match for Mayank Agarwal in IPL.

- Suresh Raina is 2 catches away from completing 100 catches for CSK in IPL.

- Dwayne Bravo is 23 runs away from completing 1000 runs for CSK in IPL.

- Ravindra Jadeja is 3 wickets away from completing 100 wickets for CSK in IPL.

- Dwayne Bravo is 3 sixes away from completing 50 sixes for CSK in IPL.

Interestingly, both teams' openers have scored same number of runs in IPL 2021. CSK openers Gaikwad and du Plessis are the ones with most runs as a pair in IPL 2021 (674), but average wise, PBKS openers Mayank and Rahul are the best (55.60).

KL Rahul needs 28 more runs to becoming the highest run-getter for Punjab in IPL by surpassing Shaun Marsh's tally of 2477 runs. The Punjab Kings captain currently holds the Purple Cap with 528 runs. And remember, this is only his third season for PBKS.

If you thought IPL 2020 was a forgettable campaign for MS Dhoni the batsman, this season has been even worse for the CSK captain. Last year, with 200 runs, IPL 2021 was statistically MS Dhoni's worst season in the IPL, but it looks as if this year would be a new low for MSD. In 13 matches, Dhoni has scored only 84 runs and it is unlikely that he would do something extraordinary to go past 200 in CSK's last league match of the season.

It is no secret that Suresh Raina has been out of sorts in IPL 2021, managing a paltry 160 runs from 12 games, of which 50-off runs came in one innings - the first of the season. In the UAE leg, Raina has scores of 4, 17*, 11, 2 and 3 before getting dropped from the previous match, with Robin Uthappa taking his place. Will Dhoni persist with Uthappa or bring Raina back?   

Ruturaj Gaikwad played only 6 games last season, in which he scored 204 runs. It was a season where CSK missed out utilising Gaikwad to his maximum. They did not, however, make the same mistake this time around, giving the youngster a full go. And by god, has Gaikwad made it count. With 521 runs at an average of 47.36, Gaikwad has responded in style, and has begun knocking at the door of Team India.

With 528 runs, Punjab Kings captain KL Rahul is leading the run-getters list and Mayank Agarwal is at 7th, whereas Mohammed Shami is 4th on the leading wicket-taker's list with 18 wickets, followed by Arshdeep Singh at 6. There have been some spectacular catches taken by PBKS fielders as well. But while individually PBKS have had a few performances, as a team, they haven't been able to click perfectly.