The rafter-packed Chidambaram stadium had witnessed another Super Kings’ victory, and this time, the boisterous crowd had known the outcome even before Vijay and Hussey took their long walk to the wicket. A mauling on the part of the home team had put the hopes of a Challengers victory beyond the most lunatic assumptions, as M. Vijay and M. Hussey tucked in to the Challengers bowling with such relish. The IPL 2011 final came up with a blistering start, but, faded into one of the softest endings that this truncated version has ever witnessed.
After the parching heat that drove many sundown-slurping enthusiasts to invigorate and resuscitate themselves with a chilled beer or a wispy cocktail, the hot summer evening at Chennai was gathering momentum for the coveted IPL-IV finals, and two neighbors were set to lock horns to bring home the bacon. Both the teams were captained by leaders who remain cool even when the tides turn against them, and both the leaders have the uncanny ability to inspire their team mates with some swashbuckling performances.
So it turned out to be a one-horse race, with the Chennai Super Kings galloping to stay ahead of opponent all through the race, where the Chennai openers did well to bat the Bangalore warriors out of this final. The 159-run stand between Hussey and Vijay drove the nail into the Challengers’ coffin, with Dhoni chipping in with a useful 21, as his brutal batting power produced reverberations that even chilled the uproarious crowd. Dhoni might just not be a hot favorite for someone who loves sublime batting skills, but is rather a cricketer turned poster-boy, who is a clear favorite among those who worship winners. A winner he is, Dhoni, did exceedingly well to reinforce his winning potentials with yet another resounding victory at the Chepauk stadium.
Chris Gayle, with no grandeur of a gale this time, fell a prey to the wily Ashwin, who tricked the southpaw into the edging the ball to Dhoni’s gloves. The little fire that was burning in the Royal Challengers’ dressing room was doused, without any trace of a flicker, when Gayle took his weary walk back to the pavilion. Virhat Kohli, who was the remaining hope, if at all the Royal Challengers had any trace of hopes, was out of sorts, as he perished without any sign of the bull dog spirit.
Ashwin with a fine spell that earned him three wickets sealed the fate of the Royal Challengers, and with the prize wicket of Gayle, the Chennai Super Kings could see the writing on the wall lucidly, and so it did with much fanfare and delight. The other team members of the Royal Challengers left the scene without putting up a brave front. The two Chennai boys had scripted a heartwarming and a match-winning performance, which warmed the cockles of many a heart at the Chepauk stadium. With back to back titles in the IPL contest, Chennai Super Kings has become the pride of this town, and more so when three of its prolific run-getters, M. Vijay, Abinav Mukund and S. Badrinath, have booked a berth to be a part of the squad that leaves for the West Indies to play a Test and a One-day series.
For some period, it looked as if cricket had unleashed its fury after all, with the string of twenty-twenty matches testing the patience of even the most adoring of cricket fans. Not for nothing, the notion of revving up cricket with the glistening IPL format hasn’t found the favor of traditionalists. A much needed and awaited respite from the mundane cricket life is there for the taking, as the Indian cricketers look forward to their next fixture, a test and a one-day against the West Indies in the Caribbean. A test series in the West Indies, and are there any takers?
