CLT20 : Raina century leads CSK to title
Chennai Super Kings 185 for 2 (Raina 109*, McCullum 39) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 180 for 6 (Gambhir 80, Uthappa 39, Negi 5-22) by eight wickets
Chennai Super Kings captain M.S. Dhoni collects the winners cheque
Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir gets runners-up award
Oppo man-of-the-series also goes to Suresh Raina
Best bowler to Sunil Narine
Powerplay of the series: Most sixes award in the tournament goes to Suresh Rainaand he also gets golden bat award
Fairplay award goes to Cape Cobras
Awards were presented to the officials i.e. umpires, match-referee
Oppo man-of-the-match went to Pavan Negi for his 5 for 22.
Sixes award went to Suresh Raina for his eight sixes in this match
Super Kings lost Dwayne Smith in the first over of the chase and it was all Raina after that. Almost everything Raina attempted came off on the night. The drives raced in the gaps through the off side. The pulls disappeared behind square. The strike was turned over as if on autopilot.
But it was the sixes that stood out. Raina stepped out and lofted Piyush Chawla and Kuldeep Yadav for six straight sixes. Nearly every time he left the crease, Raina deposited the ball over the boundary.
He survived a stumping chance off Kuldeep on 78 and the bowler Yusuf Pathan put down a difficult, diving chance when Raina was on 88. But both those chances came after Raina had snatched the game from Knight Riders' grasp.
Knight Riders' spinners, led by the absent Narine, had been instrumental in their march to the final but Raina never allowed them to settle down. Kuldeep, Chawla, Suryakumar Yadav and Yusuf went for a collective 1 for 137 in 13.3 overs.
Raina's hundred came off 59 balls, and he put on 118 with Brendon McCullum in 12.2 overs. The New Zealand captain was not in great touch, but swept his way to a vital 39 off 30.
Kolkata Knight Riders 180/6 (20/20 ov)
Chennai Super Kings 185/2 (18.3/20 ov)
"Overall it was a fantastic game for us," says MS Dhoni. "To start off it was a good toss to win. It was slightly difficult for the opposition bowlers. Our fielding was not up to the mark. In finals, you have to take the game to the next level. So we didn't start well. Negi is not afraid to toss the ball. It was important to do that to get something out of the wicket.
What's important is to get to the knockouts. After that you may win games, you may lose games. We have made eight finals, won four, i won't say it is too bad. We made quite a few errors in the last two finals, so what we took out of those finals was really important. Raina was aggressive throughout and he ensured he stayed till the end."
"All of us should be proud of each other, the way we showed character," says Gautam Gambhir. "The journey is not yet complete, it has just started. We thought 170-180 was a very good total, but in the second innings there was dew as well, it was difficult to grip the balls for spinners. We have great characters, tough characters. The guys should be proud of what they have achieved. They will be better next year."
Suresh Raina gets an award for hitting most sixes, another for most sixes in the tournament, the golden bat award and the Man of the Series award, but Pawan Negi is the Man of the Match for his five-wicket haul. "There was turn in the wicket, so I tried to bowl slow," says Negi. "It was a big match and a final, i only tried to give my best."
Sunil Narine maybe absent but he has won the golden wicket award.
"I have seen Virat Kohli bat and hit big hundreds and i have learnt from him that you can't throw it away," says Raina. "I have also learnt a lot from Yuvraj on how to finish innings. In the last seven years, I have played with Fleming, Hayden, Hussey.. and I have learnt from them on how to build an innings."
"We have been here before in 2010, but it has been a long time since then. So very happy," says Ashwin. "He (Raina) was hitting sixes like he was picking up peanuts. This is a small ground but he was hitting sixes for time pass."
"We were waiting for three years, twice we made it to the finals, but it's sad when you lose the finals," says Jadeja.
"There was a bit of nervousness but it is important because it helps you keep your feet on the ground," says Mohit Sharma
"It was turning a pitch. Suresh's innings was world-class. He showed why he is one of the best T20 batsman in the world," says Brendon McCullum.
"I thought it was a good score. We saw the ball turning. But Suresh Raina, take a bow," says Faf du Plessis.
"For me it's a brilliant change from Mumbai," says Dwayne Smith, who was part of the winning Mumbai Indians team last year. "This has been the best team i have been part of. Everytime someone fails, someone else picks up."
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