The winner will play Kolkata Knight Riders in the final on Sunday. Chennai Super Kings lead head-to-head encounters 8-5 against Kings XI Punjab. Follow live updates of the match.
Chennai Super Kings take on Kings XI Punjab in the Qualifier 2 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Follow live updates of the match here: (Live Scorecard | Text Commentary )
Buoyed by their convincing seven-wicket win over title holders Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings will take on Kings XI Punjab in their second knockout game inside three days today. All eyes will be on Punjab star Glenn Maxwell, who single-handly floored Chennai in both their league games.
Friday's Qualifier 2, the penultimate IPL-7 match, at the Wankhede Stadium will provide Chennai a great platform to avenge those two defeats and leapfrog into the June 1 summit clash against Kolkata Knight Riders in Bangalore.
Maxwell, the third highest run-getter with 539 runs this season, smashed 95 in 43 balls in Abu Dhabi last month to help Punjab chase down a massive 206-run target set up by the Super Kings. The Victorian was even more dominating in their subsequent clash earlier this month in Cuttack, where he hit a whirlwind 90 off just 35 balls to power Punjab to an incredible score of 231. (Read more )
For all their past performances in IPL, both Chennai and Punjab would be aware that what matters is how each team plays their knockout match. The virtual semifinal clash is between two of the better teams this year and while one would have to say farewell at the end, both sides would take heart from the fact that they have battled hard this year and deserved to reach the business end of IPL 7. (Read more )
Chennai still hold the edge in IPL head-to-head
Punjab may have thwarted Chennai Super Kings twice in the ongoing tournament but Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men continue to have a better record in overall head-to-head IPL clashes. With eight wins and six losses against Punjab, Chennai would hope to get lucky the third time.
Chennai's overall win percentage - 61.50 - is also superior to that of Punjab - 52.40. While numbers are only a minor indication, Chennai would be hoping to come good on their much-acclaimed status as champions. (Read more )
Chennai Super Kings' Suresh Raina has been in excellent form on the field. His form off it though has hardly been shabby either. The left-handed hard-hitting batsman, who will lead India in the three ODIs in Bangladesh in June, is reportedly dating Bollywood actress Shruti Hassan.
According to a report in Mumbai Mirror, the 27-year-old cricketer has taken his 'friendship' with Shruti - daughter of veteran actor Kamal Hassan - to the next, more serious level. While the two were close, a source reveals that the 'partnership' has become more solid in recent times. (Read more )
SQUADS
Kings XI Punjab: Virender Sehwag, Manan Vohra, Wridhiman Saha, Glenn Maxell, David Miller, George Bailey, Akshar Patel, Rishi Dhawan, Mitchell Johnson, Karanveer Singh, L Balaji, Sandeep Sharma, Parvinder Awana, B Hendricks, Shaun Marsh, Cheteshwar Pujara, Mandeep Singh, Shardul Thakur, Shivam Sharma, Anureet Singh, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, M Karthik.
Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (C), Suresh Raina, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Ashish Nehra, Mohit Sharma, Samuel Badree, Ben Hilfenhaus, Matt Henry, B Aparajith, Mithun Manhas, Ishwar Pandey, Pawan Negi, Vijay Shankar, Ronit More, John Hastings. Match commences at 8 pm.
Story first published on: Friday, 30 May 2014 16:21
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