Shikhar Dhawan: ‘Very special to beat CSK in Chennai’

Punjab Kings skipper Shikhar Dhawan termed his side’s four-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk as ‘very, very special’, adding that beating CSK in their own den was a big thing to do.

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It was only a couple of days back when PBKS suffered a 56-run defeat to Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Mohali, but Dhawan hailed Punjab Kings’ team character.

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“It feels very very special. Beating Chennai in Chennai is a very big thing. Very very pleased and that shows the great character of our side, leaving that loss behind and coming up with a fresh mindset. I was very happy with the way our bowlers bowled, we got them at the right score. They have been very consistent,” said Dhawan after the match.

Liam Livingstone scored 40 off 24 balls after PBKS were asked to chase down a target of 201, while Prabhsimran Singh (42) was also among the runs. The duo played the anchor role in the successful run chase, while Sikandar Raza scored 13 off seven balls.

“As a captain we wanted them to play more overs, Liam has got his touch back and would want him to bat more overs. Good signs that all are playing well,” Dhawan added.

MS Dhoni, the CSK skipper, felt that while they were 10-15 runs short, it was two bad overs that cost them the game.

“We need to be prepared as to what is to be done. The last few overs when we were batting, we could have gotten 10-15 more. Our bowling needed some cushion. The slower one did grip. Our batters have been putting runs consistently. I think 200 was par but we bowled two bad overs. We know the conditions well. We didn’t bowl well,” said Dhoni.

Devon Conway was named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 92, but that eventually went in vain.

While Conway credited CSK batting coach Mike Hussey, he also added that he relished batting with Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ajinkya Rahane.

“I try to work as close as I can with Mike Hussey who is very experienced not only for Australia but also for CSK, he has played a lot of cricket here, along with the other players. I enjoy batting with Ruturaj and Ajinkya has got a lot of experience. When you build partnerships, it helps,” said Conway.

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