Thaindian News

Chennai, May 4 (IANS) Man of the Match Michael Hussey and Rajasthan Royals captain Shane Warne concurred that the caught and bowled wicket by Shadab Jakati to dismiss Shane Watson turned the game around here on Wednesday when the Chennai Super Kings beat the visitors by eight wickets in the Indian Premier League.

Watson’s dismissal ended an 86-run partnership for the opening wicket with Rahul Dravid and the Royals innings was all downhill thereafter.

“I definitely agree. They had a really good partnership going. They were scoring at will and even Dravid was outscoring Watson. But you know how damaging Watson can be. He can clear the boundaries even with the field at the back,” said Hussey, who top scored with 79 not out.

“That was an unbelievable catch really. He hit it very hard and Jakati had to hang on to that. Then the spinners went to work and made it difficult for the Rajastan batters.”

The Australian star admitted that the Super Kings enjoyed the home advantage and the hot weather conditions could put off the visiting opposition.

“I think we know the conditions quite well, we practice here all the time. So we know how it gets harder as the 20 overs wear on. And it is tough to get used to the conditions when you come in for a one-off game. It can be tough to adapt,” he said.

Although sitting pretty with 12 points on the back of five home wins, Hussey pointed out that there was still a long way to go to be thinking of qualifying for the next phase of the competition.

“We got to get a few more wins here before we can even get into the final. It’s a pretty close and tight competition. And we’ve got a pretty tough run actually.

“We’re away for three games I think. We have to continue to play a good brand of cricket and hopefully get enough wins to get into the final,” he said.

Hussey heaped praise on the spinners who, he said, laid the foundation for the victories, especially those against the Deccan Chargers last week and against the Royals Wednesday.

“They have done a great job and consistently well for us. They have bowled well in these conditions. They really pulled us back into the game in the last two games.

“Both DC and Royals got off to a fantastic start against us, but they (the spinners) tied them down in the middle and picked up wickets. They are the key to our team and that’s why it’s going to be a real loss to lose Randiv during the Sri Lankan series,” he said referring to Suraj Randiv’s imminent departure to join the Sri Lankan team that is scheduled to tour England later this month.

Meanwhile, Royals skipper Warne admitted that his side missed out on an excellent opportunity to put up at least 160 or 170 runs when batting first.

“It is disappointing. At 86 for 1 after 10 overs, we should have scored 170 or 160-odd runs. But there were too many dot balls and our batsmen took too long to set themselves in.

“I thought the wicket was fine. Rahul Dravid played beautifully. He is a class batsman. I love playing with him.

“Actually we bowled well, but after getting Vijay out, we couldn’t sustain the pressure for the next three-four overs. We have always shown great intensity on the field, but today we made a few silly errors and hence couldn’t sustain the pressure.

“But let me take nothing from Suresh Raina and Mike Hussey,” Warne said.