Expecting First Away Win of Season 6?

Kings XI Punjab are coming back with a morale-boosting win against Pune. Chennai Super Kings are coming out of a loss - but with a lot of confidence. Team(both batsmen & bowlers) are bound - not to be overconfident & listless like the first match. . 

Last Season, Kings XI Punjab won both  the games against Chennai Super Kings. So CSK should be looking to return the favor this season. 

CSK Probable XI

1. Hussey 2. Vijay 3. Raina 4. Badri 5. Bravo 6. Dhoni 7. Jadeja 8. Morris/Albie 9.Ashwin 10. Rajpoot. 11. Nannes

If Albie Morkel is fit, he is bound to play. But with the ankle injury scare in Ramplay finals, it is tough to predict. Decision between Anirudh, Rajpoot & Jakati is bound to be decided by the pitch. But KXIP team generally sets up a pitch that favors fast bowlers. 

Kings XI Punjab:

1. Gilchrist 2. Mandeep Singh 3. Vohra 4. Hussey 5. Azhar Mahmood 6.Gurkeerat Singh 7.  R Sathish 8.PP Chawla 9. P Awana 10. P Kumar 11.RJ Harris

On paper, the match looks like a direct match up between a Goliath & David (without any special powers).  

Most Dangerous Players:

1. Azhar Mahmood: Age is simply not catching up with him. He can bat, bowl & for a pakistan-born player, he can field too. 

2. Harris: Ryan Harris is one of the quality bowlers in T20 format. If Hussey & Vijay can keep their wickets intact, taking apart the other bowlers would not be a huge challenge. 

Prediction: Barring another Paul Valkattai type performance, CSK should look to win the match comfortably. 

Welcome Faf!

Faf has confirmed on his blog that he would be flying to India next week. :) Though he may not be ready for the matches. But I am sure he would be a key player in the later stages of the tournament this season. :( 

Albie & Chris Expected to Leave for IPL on Monday

Albie Morkel has confirmed in his twitter account that he would be catching a flight on Monday to join CSK Team. Expecting Albie Morkel to be the final piece in the winning combination for CSK. If you want to know more about the contributions of Albie & Chris to their respective teams in South Africa T20 Finals, read more at Cricinfo.

Update: Albie might have a ankle injury. He is going for a scan in the morning and then only - we will know the extend of the injury. Bad News for CSK :(

Update 2: Albie Morkel has confirmed in twitter that scan went well and he is leaving for India. Ooh!

Dhoni's Rescue Act - Not Enough for CSK

Another IPL Starts for CSK with a defeat @ Home. Though CSK bowlers did a great job of restricting Mumbai Indians to sub-150 score, CSK batsman - barring Dhoni, played without any conviction or plan. Considering that this is the first match of the series and that too - against a strong MI team, expecting that this loss would not make any huge difference to the team. 

Positives:

1. Nannes: Nannes did not have any problems - adjusting to a new team. Showed that hat Bollinger would not be missed this season. Expecting a consistently strong performance from him. 

2. Dhoni: If not for the Pollard catch, Dhoni would have single-handedly won the game for CSK. His fine form bodes well for the team. 

3. Ashwin: Thought that Ashwin also did a fine job. Except for 2 sixes from Pollard, everybody found tough handling him.

Negatives;

1. Laughlin: Though one match is never enough to judge a character, felt that Shadab Jakati could have added more to the team than Laughlin. Also would be interesting to watch Jason Holder for atleast one match. 

2. CSK Batsmen: In a sub-150 score, surprised to see that none of CSK batsman took charge. Hope with more time the team spends, they would start adjusting back to their roles in CSK

CSK Fan's Man of the Match: Dhoni without any doubt.

Hope the team comes up with a better game plan for the match against Punjab. Next match on April 10 @ Mohali. 

IPL Season 6 Journey Begins

Sixth Season of IPL begins for CSK Fans. A season where everyone recognizes Chennai Super Kings as the favorite. But we know the favorite are going to have a season of ups & downs, a season of dazzling performances and poor decisions,  A season where a select few would stand up and get counted. A season we look forward to.