Raina, Dhoni star in Chennai triumph

Chennai Super Kings 168 for 5 (Raina 57*, Dhoni 22, Fernando 2-23) beat Mumbai Indians 146 for 9 (Tendulkar 48, Pollard 27, Jakati 2-27) by 22 runs

MS Dhoni has added another feather to his captaincy hat. It was he who started the turnaround against a formidable Mumbai Indians attack, his deputy Suresh Raina capitalised on two dropped catches to score a crucial fifty, and Chennai Super Kings defended with aggression, smartness and flair to win the third IPL. Chennai were struggling at 68 for 3 after 12 overs when Dhoni got into the act: 100 runs were added in the last eight, and Raina scored 44 at a strike-rate of 200 after the first drop. The win concluded a fourth consecutive one-sided knockout in the tournament.

Ever since R Ashwin started the defence with a maiden over, Mumbai never really threatened Chennai. Sachin Tendulkar, playing with a split webbing, played his least fluent innings of the tournament, scoring a laboured 48 off 45. Mumbai tried some strange moves: promotions for Abhishek Nayar and Harbhajan Singh bombed, and even at the fall of the fifth wicket, with 69 required off 31, Kieron Pollard was not the man making his way out of the dugout.

There were no problems with tactics for Chennai: they went with the old-fashioned approach of keeping wickets in hand, never mind the slow start, and with M Vijay breaking free, had reached a perfectly acceptable 40 for no loss at the end of Powerplay. Dilhara Fernando brought Mumbai back, removing Vijay with his split-finger slower ball in the eighth over. Pollard ended Matthew Hayden's 31-ball 17-run misery, and S Badrinath holed out in the 12th over.

Dhoni left alone the first ball he faced, was beaten by a legcutter after that, was almost bowled the next ball, and worked a single to end that testing Fernando over. Mumbai can file for lack of sufficient warning for what was to come next. The first ball Dhoni faced from Pollard he charged down and hit him into the second tier - with one hand. The next ball Pollard ran in and didn't let go, stares were exchanged, and Tendulkar rushed in to apologise to the batsman: it was the second time Pollard had done this in his 2.1 overs. Dhoni's bat spoke emphatically, though, with a punch for four to end the over.

Tendulkar was warned sufficiently by now: he had to bring Lasith Malinga, whose yorkers have been near perfect, back before he would have ideally liked to. Dhoni charged at him, converted one into a low full toss, and hit a boundary to extra cover.

Zaheer Khan was brought back in the next over. He produced a top edge that neither Fernando (running in from third man) nor Abhishek Nayar (running back from point) claimed. Salt was in ready supply for Zaheer's wound: out of nowhere Raina produced timing and a four and a six to take Chennai to 108 after 15 overs. In the over that followed, Pollard eked out a skier from Raina, which Zaheer dropped. The next ball Raina made room and lofted over extra cover for six. The ball after was hit to Tendulkar, and cannily they exposed his injured hand by stealing a second. And the next was slogged over midwicket for six. Mumbai needed a time-out to figure out what had hit them.

Fernando, three overs for 12 until then, bowled a poor last over to nearly double the tally. Malinga started the last over superbly: bat couldn't meet ball for the first four deliveries, and Albie Morkel was run out in panic. Then it came apart: five wides, followed by a length ball driven over extra cover, and some manic running, and they were chasing the biggest total in an IPL final.

A maiden over was not the best way to start for Mumbai, but losing Shikhar Dhawan in the second was even worse. The next 10 overs featured smart spin bowling, hustling fielders, run-out opportunities created, signs of desperation of Tendulkar, and eventually the wickets of Nayar and Harbhajan in the 12th over. With the required rate going past 12 an over, Tendulkar holed out to long-off, and Raina pulled off a blinder, running in from deep midwicket, to send back Saurabh Tiwary. To everybody's surprise, JP Duminy walked out, and by the time he walked back, he had left Mumbai 55 to get in three overs.

Pollard made a match out of this too: taking 22 runs off Bollinger's 18th over. Morkel bowled a tight 19th over, with a long-off, and a mid-off up in the circle and so straight it was almost behind him. Pollard hit a catch to him: it just highlighted which captain had got it right on the night.

Bollinger charges Chennai into final

Chennai Super Kings 142 for 7 (Badrinath 37, Harris 3-29) beat Deccan Chargers 104 (Symonds 23, Bollinger 4-13)

Chennai Super Kings, boosted by a determined display from their bowlers led by Doug Bollinger, put an end to Deccan Chargers' run of five consecutive wins to qualify for the IPL final for the second time. They overcame a poor start, aided by a measured partnership from MS Dhoni and S Badrinath, and a late surge from S Anirudha helped post 142 in tricky conditions. Bollinger and R Ashwin then crippled Deccan in their chase, and the rest contributed to chip away at the middle order, to seal a hard-fought win.

Deccan, given their successful run, would have backed themselves to overhaul Chennai's score comfortably. The conditions were aiding swing and movement, and the pitch was taking turn, but that had little to do with their slow start to the chase. Adam Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs, both searching for form, batted in a matter contrary to their reputation, preferring caution over attack in the Powerplay. Bollinger varied his lengths and Ashwin, like he has for much of the tournament, altered his pace and flight to again prove economical. While Deccan's approach, for the most part, remained restrained, a significant number of dot balls in the first six overs were failed attempts at the big shots.

The only convincing shot to the boundary was a straight six from Gilchrist off Ashwin, but Bollinger ended the misery with a double-strike in the sixth over. Gilchrist flicked straight to midwicket and T Suman, whose promotion to No.3 had triggered a turnaround in Deccan's fortunes this IPL, cut straight to point. The Powerplay yielded just 23, the second-lowest in the tournament, and it was only a matter of time before the frustration set in.

Rohit Sharma has often had to rescue Deccan from trouble, but he added to their woes by lofting Albie Morkel to long on with the field spread out. Equally dispiriting for Deccan was Gibbs' lack of conviction. Dropped from the team for his troubles at the top, Gibbs had been recalled at the expense of an allrounder for his experience and game-changing ability. But the shortage in confidence was evident, for, in the wake of a escalating required-rate and the attacking field with a slip and leg slip in place, he struggled to pierce the in-field, particularly against spin. Several deliveries were defended either side of the pitch, interspersed with a streaky boundary, and his downfall came in the 11th over when he played on to Shadab Jakati.

The match was not over, with Andrew Symonds striking Jakati for consecutive fours in an over which fetched 17. But when he, in an act of desperation in the 16th over, slogged Ashwin to deep midwicket, Chennai were virtually through. Bollinger returned to nip out two more in his next spell and sealed Deccan's fate.

MS Dhoni's decision to bat on a testing pitch was prompted by his faith in the top order to overcome the conditions, but it let him down despite being given chances. Matthew Hayden was dropped twice, Suresh Raina once, but those reprieves amounted for little as both fell in tame fashion to hand Deccan the early edge. Their troubles were compounded when M Vijay played back to a full delivery to be caught plumb to make it 29 for 3.

Dhoni and Badrinath were cautious in their approach, but ensured the run-rate didn't slip to create any frustration. Badrinath dropped anchor and Dhoni, amid the spate of cuts, dabs and nudges, stepped up to find the boundary. Their partnership of 52 comprised just four boundaries, three of which were from Dhoni's bat. He smashed Harmeet Singh and RP Singh through the off side and charged to drive Pragyan Ojha down the ground. But another attacking maneuver from Deccan, who fielded a slip for Harmeet's legcutters, earned them their fourth wicket as Dhoni slashed one straight to Rohit.

Badrinath did his best to prevent the innings from stagnating. He launched Ojha for a straight six and slugged Symonds over mid on for a boundary before being stumped in the penultimate over.

Chennai, thanks to a combination of some power hitting and streaky batting, managed to score 46 off the last five overs. Anirudha, replacing Sudeep Tyagi, targeted RP and Harris to strike a couple of sixes to lift his team to 142 - a major recovery considering Deccan's meek reply, which left them hunting for consolation in Saturday's third-place playoff against Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Dhoni blasts Chennai to semi-finals

Chennai Super Kings 195 for 4 (Dhoni 54*, Badrinath 53, Raina 46) beat Kings XI Punjab 192 for 3 (Marsh 88*, Irfan 44*) by six wickets

A pumped-up MS Dhoni showed why he's one of the great finishers in the game, blasting 30 runs in the final two overs to ensure Chennai Super Kings would contest an IPL semi-final for the third season in a row. Chennai's chances seemed dim after Shaun Marsh's sparkling innings had powered Kings XI Punjab to a massive total, but meaty innings from Suresh Raina and S Badrinath set the stage for a Dhoni onslaught during a tense finish.

Punjab held the edge for most of the match, and going into the last two overs Chennai needed 29, a tough task even with Dhoni and Albie Morkel at the crease. Juan Theron had been a hero the last time the two teams met, but he couldn't save Punjab in Dharamsala.

The penultimate over, by Theron, started with two murderous hits for four from Dhoni, feasting on the length deliveries offered. He looked to repeat on the third ball, but a thick edge flew high and fast to wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara, who managed to get a glove on it. Theron kept it to singles for the rest of the over, leaving Chennai needing 16 off the last.

Gambhir toils for hard-fought victory

20 overs Delhi Daredevils 113 for 4 (Gambhir 57*, Bollinger 2-24) beat Chennai Super Kings 112 for 9 (Badrinath 30*, Nehra 3-26, Sehwag 2-18) by six wickets

Chennai Super Kings were restricted to their lowest total of the season at the MA Chidambaran stadium, and yet they threatened to defend it. On a pitch that offered bounce and sharp turn Delhi Daredevils lost three wickets for a song before Gautam Gambhir and Mithun Manhas batted with determination, fighting dehydration, to secure a valuable victory. It wasn't until 17.1 overs that Delhi's run-rate touched six for the first time in the chase and they overhauled 112 with eight balls to spare.

Delhi had lost to Punjab on a similar surface at home, although the Kotla surface was slower, and they had to contend with the humidity of Chennai as well after MS Dhoni chose to bat. However, their fast bowlers Ashish Nehra and Dirk Nannes, back after a finger injury, made vital incisions into the Chennai line-up, an advantage their spinners capitalised on. Chennai were 39 for 3 after the Powerplay, 55 for 6 after ten overs, and only an eleventh-hour boost propped them past three figures. Doug Bollinger hit the only six of the innings - in the 18th over - and it turned out to be the only one of the match.

The chase was anything but straightforward. David Warner slapped his second ball, from offspinner R Ashwin, to cover and Bollinger dismissed Virender Sehwag - Hayden leaping at slip to take the catch overhead - and Tillakaratne Dilshan in the second over. Chants of "Bollinger, Bollinger" resonated around the ground and he left Delhi reeling at 7 for 3.

R Ashwin, Suresh Raina humble Kolkata

Chennai Super Kings 143 for 1 (Raina 78*, Vijay 50*) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 139 for 8 (Mathews 48, Ashwin 3-16, Bollinger 2-15 ) by nine wickets

Chennai Super Kings, inspired equally by R Ashwin, Suresh Raina and M Vijay, crushed a scruffy Kolkata Knight Riders by nine wickets in front of a throbbing, partisan home crowd. After Ashwin, who for the second consecutive game grabbed two wickets in an over, led the attack in keeping Kolkata to a paltry 139 for 8, Raina and M Vijay launched a powerful assault to see Chennai home with 6.2 overs to spare and propel them to second place in the points table.

The unbeaten stand between Raina and Vijay raised the fastest team hundred of the IPL and the pair made the same surface, on which Kolkata struggled, appear a concrete strip. With another disappointing performance Kolkata are now perilously close to being knocked out.

In a crunch game, Ashwin took the new ball and rocked the top order during a mesmerising spell after Sourav Ganguly opted to bat on a surface he reckoned would assist spin later in the night. The first over suggested spin would play a role quicker than that, but at 11 for 0 after two overs Ganguly couldn't have envisioned what lay in store.

Having nonchalantly dumped the first ball of the third over for a straight six, Chris Gayle repeated the shot and was stumped. Brendon McCullum survived a very good shout second ball when he missed Ashwin's version of the carrom ball, but two balls later was gobbled up at short fine leg when he top-edged a sweep. Ganguly was the next to go, unfortunate because of a poor call, when Doug Bollinger got into the act with a full ball that was missing leg stump.

Seventeen for 3 became 19 for 4 thanks to a brilliant reaction from MS Dhoni. Ashwin speared the ball down David Hussey's pads and as the batsman fell forward, Dhoni collected and broke the stumps. Hussey's back foot had just failed to get back in, and Ashwin let out a war cry. Dhoni stuck in a leg gully to go with slip for hat-trick delivery, and Ashwin delivered a ripper. It pitched and turned down the pads and as it spun down the ball kissed Angelo Mathews' gloves to the catcher around the corner. Ashwin and the Chennai fielders sprung up in celebration but the hat-trick was denied by a stone-faced Simon Taufel.

Suman, bowlers keep Deccan alive

Deccan Chargers 139 for 4 (Suman 55, Symonds 27*, Ashwin 2-13) beat Chennai Super Kings 138 for 8 (Raina 52, Harris 3-18) by six wickets

Deccan Chargers continued to climb up the points table by beating Chennai Super Kings comprehensively by six wickets at their "home" venue in Nagpur to draw level with Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders and the losing side. The win was set up by their bowlers, after MS Dhoni decided to bat on a scorching afternoon, who restricted Chennai to 138, allowing the batsmen to chase at a comfortable pace despite two early jolts and the sapping heat. Deccan struggled against spin initially, losing three wickets to the slow stuff, but rode on another fifty from T Suman and Andrew Symonds' cool head to seal victory with five balls to spare.

The only bit that really went right for Chennai was the toss, which Dhoni won and had little hesitation in choosing to bat. When Chennai accelerated from 21 after three overs to 55 for 1 from six it seemed a run-fest was on the cards. As it turned out, Chennai had little to celebrate thereafter. In the eighth over, M Vijay called for a suicidal second run and that momentary brain freeze changed the complexion of Chennai's innings. It was another example of the schizophrenic series he's had, with aborted starts amid some match-winning knocks, and from there Deccan never let the initiative slip.

From 65 for 2 in eight overs, Chennai slowed down to reach the half-way stage at 74 for 2 with Symonds and Pragyan Ojha keeping a check with stump-to-stump bowling. Chennai's predicament had been brought about by their batsmen's urge to dominate and as wickets fell around him, Suresh Raina began to improvise cleverly. He moved to leg to clip the ball fine and walked down the pitch to upset the bowlers, but also reined in his attacking instincts, knocking the ball in the gaps during the middle overs.

Chennai topple leaders Mumbai

Chennai Super Kings 165 for 4 (Hayden 35, Pollard 2-27) beat Mumbai Indians 141 for 9 (Tendulkar 45) by 24 runs

Chennai Super Kings completed a sweep of their three-match home leg after the Mumbai Indians' batting fell apart in a rash of poor strokes following Sachin Tendulkar's retirement due to dehydration. On a track where 467 runs were plundered three days ago, boundaries were hard to come by and, despite being hampered by dew, Chennai easily defended their moderate total.

Tendulkar was on his haunches and breathing heavily as early as the fourth over of the chase. However, he and Shikhar Dhawan provided their customary solid start, hitting a four an over in the Powerplay to take Mumbai to 46 for 0. Dhawan chopped on Thilan Thushara's first delivery, but Mumbai progressed smoothly, if slowly, to 62 after nine overs when Tendulkar decided to retire.

After looking in control of the match till then, Mumbai imploded, losing a wicket in each of the next six overs. Ambati Rayudu was the first to go, stumped after tearing out of the crease and missing when looking to loft a short ball from Suresh Raina. When Chennai celebrated, Rayudu practised the stroke that would have served him better, a cut.

The potentially explosive Trinidad pair of Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard have done little of note with the bat all tournament, and the trend continued at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Both looked to launch the ball into the crowds beyond the sightscreen but got more height than distance on their strokes, and a pair of well-held catches sent them on their way.

Chennai Super Kings 246 for 5 (Vijay 127, Morkel 62) beat Rajasthan Royals 223 for 5 (Ojha 94*, Watson 60, Bollinger 2-15) by 23 runs

This was more Cricinfo Slogout - or whatever your preference for keyboard-fuelled cricket is - at its best as Chennai Super Kings, led by M Vijay, pulverized the Rajasthan Royals bowling and set up a 23-run win. Having been given first use of a belter of track by his captain, an in-form Vijay drubbed a dazed attack into submission with an outstanding century of powerful and clean hitting that carried Chennai to a record total. From 91 for 2 after ten overs, Chennai ransacked 155 in the final ten, and 76 in the last five, with Vijay and Albie Morkel setting a record for the tournament's highest partnership.

After 20 overs that resembled the mid-point of the French Revolution, Rajasthan had their task cut-out. Their reply was a hard-hitting one led by Naman Ojha and Shane Watson, but though they titled at the windmill for a while, Doug Bollinger's fine debut - 2 for 15 from four overs - made sure Chennai held on for a victory that kept alive their hopes of a place in the semi-finals.

There's a special kick that comes from finding a new sensation. So step up, Vijay, and take your bows. On a scorching Saturday afternoon, Chennai bolted out of the stables. The tone was set when they reached 66 for 1 after six overs, with Vijay flexing his muscles to reach 28 off 14 balls. Suresh Raina was cut off by Warne for the second time this season, but that proved to be the best thing to happen to Chennai. Morkel teed off with a trademark slogged six off Abhishek Jhunjhunwala, and when Warne began with a terrible long hop the result was six more. Vijay also launched Warne for six to raise a fifty.

After that costly over Chennai's run rate was near ten. It went past that mark the first ball of the next over, as Vijay late cut Yusuf Pathan for four and charged him for six, and then nearly touched 11 when Morkel slogged four and six off successive deliveries. Off went Yusuf to nurse figures of 0 for 44 from four overs. Two more incredible shots flowed in the next over, bowled by Shaun Tait. Morkel's unleashed a perfect drive past cover, Vijay made room and used the pace on the ball to steer a six over third man. By this time the fans were high on some awesome batting, and a pulled six out of the ground sent the spectators at deep midwicket into delirium. After 15 overs, Chennai were 170 for 2.

Upon the conclusion of the 16th over, they were 196 for 2. Vijay's seventh six came promptly on resumption after the time-out, with Sumit Narwal starting off by bowling length. Morkel didn't want to be left out and drove a straight six to raise the century stand in 43 balls, but was left marvelling at his partner's strokeplay when two more sixes flew off Vijay's bat in a 26-run over. Narwal went for 41 in two overs and it was left to Warne, Watson and Tait to try rein in the rampant batsmen.

Vijay blasts Chennai to vital victory

Chennai Super Kings 162 for 5 (Vijay 78, Raina 40*) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 161 for 4 (Kallis 52, Jakati 2-17) by five wickets

The fear of an early elimination from the tournament drove Chennai Super Kings to deliver their best all-round performance, that too against one of the top teams in the tournament so far. Their propensity to choke despite being in a winning position, like against Kings XI Punjab, threatened to hurt them again in front of their home fans, but some late hitting from Suresh Raina complemented the solid foundation laid by his spinners and an attacking half-century by M Vijay. Chennai won with an over to spare and Royal Challengers Bangalore's 161 wasn't enough.

It was a game that Chennai were always likely to win, after restricting Bangalore to a par score. Teams with in-form local players have been more successful than those without and Vijay was the difference today. An aggressive batsman who rarely plays ungainly strokes, Vijay finally delivered after failing to convert his starts in the earlier games. He showed glimpses of his abilities during a cameo against Rajasthan Royals before a run out cut short his innings, but today he was determined to go one step further, sometimes two or three, stepping down the pitch and carting the bowlers without sacrificing his style.

Hayden, for once, had to ride on the passenger seat. At the end of three overs, he had faced just one ball for no runs. Vijay faced the other 17 and had already zipped to 37, 24 of those coming off a single over from Praveen Kumar. Vijay began with textbook boundaries, punching Praveen past cover and flicking Dale Steyn past square leg. Bangalore weren't prepared for the explosion in the third over when Vijay opened fire. A short delivery was hooked for six, a slower one was dismissed over wide long-on, a leg-side delivery was worked past short fine leg and a length ball was clipped over deep square leg. Vijay's footwork was complemented by his placement and a right dose of power.

A worried Anil Kumble brought himself on in the fourth over and immediately checked the scoring, cutting back on pace and cramping the batsmen for room. A subdued Hayden sashayed down the pitch and was foxed by a googly. Kumble had conceded just nine off his first two overs, but support wasn't forthcoming from the other end as the second spinner, Pietersen, got pasted.

Vijay, who had reached his fifty off 29 balls in the eighth over, thumped three sixes off Pietersen over the on side, using his feet on each occasion. However, an ambitious attempt at a fourth led to his dismissal, scooping to wide long-on, and it was a moment of relief for Bangalore. Kumble continued to strangle the scoring after Vijay's departure but a couple of quick wickets would have made it closer affair. Raina and MS Dhoni improvised, nudged balls in to the gaps and kept the asking-rate within manageable levels. But ambitious pulls from Dhoni and S Badrinath led to top edges and nearly altered the script. Raina, though, kept his cool and an inside-out scoop to a front foot no-ball from Vinay Kumar led to wild celebrations and relief in the Chennai camp.

It was Chennai's better bowling effort that set up the victory by preventing Bangalore from setting an impregnable target. Shadab Jakati said in an interview that the pitch was slow and had gripped. He and Muttiah Muralitharan conceded just 37 in eight overs.

A half-century partnership between Jacques Kallis and Virat Kohli set Bangalore up for something bigger after Robin Uthappa threatened during a cameo, aided by yet another dropped catch. The drop cost Chennai 21 runs, and it brought Kallis and Kohli together for a stand of 63 for the third wicket. They focused on keeping wickets in hand and kept dropping the ball to pick up singles against the spinners. Murali bowled round the wicket to keep Kallis in check and Jakati fired the quicker ones at the stumps.

The problem of full-tosses persisted for Chennai but ironically, it was that ball which helped break the partnership. Kohli chipped down the track to a full toss and scooped it straight to Vijay at long-on. It was the start of the best over the day, as Kallis tried to pinch a cheeky single to extra cover and was run out by a sharp pick up and throw by Raina. It turned out to be a double-wicket maiden for Chennai.

Chennai, however, undid the good work by letting Cameron White and Pietersen share a brisk stand of 44 in 4.3 overs. White wrecked Thilan Thushara's figures by making room and swatting him over the onside, before Pietersen walloped him over long off for a big six. The target of 162, as Kumble later said, was about 15 short of an ideal score. Bangalore remained at No.2 but Chennai moved up two spots to No.5.

Rajasthan clinch fourth straight win

Rajasthan Royals 177 for 8 (Ojha 80, Jakati 2-30, Thushara 2-28) beat Chennai Super Kings 160 for 6 (Vijay 42, Tait 2-22) by 17 runs

Naman Ojha's bat, Yusuf Pathan's right arm and some steady nerves from the fast bowlers proved enough to flummox Chennai Super Kings and lead Rajasthan Royals to their fourth win in a row. Ojha's first half-century of the season, and best score in the IPL, propelled Rajasthan to a formidable total before a miserly spells from Yusuf, who also effected a direct-hit run-out and held two catches, Shaun Tait and Siddharth Trivedi choked Chennai as the "home" side surged to a 17-run victory in Ahmedabad.

In Yusuf and Michael Lumb, Rajasthan possess some awesome firepower, but the pair fizzled in hot conditions on an ideal batting pitch. Lumb, who scored crucial 40s in the last two games, fleetingly cut loose while Pathan followed his audacious 34-ball 73 in the last game with a single-digit score. Thus it was left to Ojha to shore up the innings. For the first four overs he was a spectator as Lumb led the charge, playing a series of shots in his 16-ball 30. At 47 for 1 after four overs, Rajasthan were off to a flier. At this stage Ojha was on 14. He was keen to play from his crease and more comfortable against medium-pace than spin, though each of his five sixes came against the slower bowlers, two against Muttiah Muralitharan. Ojha played superb shots off the back foot into the arc between cover-point and short third man that were hit with tremendous bat speed and put pressure on the boundary riders.

After the strategic time-out, Faiz Fazal fell, trying to launch Shadab Jakati's left-arm spin into orbit; that brought Yusuf to the crease with Rajasthan set up at 100 for 2 after 11 overs. The last time he walked out at this venue, Pathan clubbed eight sixes in an audacious innings. Today he batted six deliveries for eight runs, with just one four, before he got a leading edge off Jakati to cover.

Ojha, after crossing fifty, relied on two areas for the majority of his runs: that same arc square of the pitch when the seamers were on, and down toward long-on, when the spinners were in operation. Ojha struggled to hit the quicker bowlers down the ground or past cover and, trying to manipulate Thilan Thushara, he got a leading edge on an ugly paddle that short fine leg gobbled up.

Robin Uthappa's blitz floors Chennai

Royal Challengers Bangalore 171 for 5 (Uthappa 68*, Murali 3-25) beat Chennai Super Kings135 for 7 (R Vinay Kumar 4-40) by 36 runs

Royal Challengers Bangalore 171 for 5 (Uthappa 68*, Murali 3-25) beat Chennai Super Kings135 for 7 (R Vinay Kumar 4-40) by 36 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

"I'm just an ordinary cricketer who is working hard," said Robin Uthappa during the mid-innings break. His 38-ball 68 that rescued Royal Challengers Bangalore's innings, however, was anything but ordinary. Uthappa's eleventh-hour blitz helped his team recover from a shaky start and sluggish middle overs, after which Bangalore's bowlers throttled Chennai Super Kings to move to the top of the points table.

Chennai took wickets during the early and middle overs but it was the final 19 deliveries of Bangalore's innings, where Uthappa blazed away, that made the difference. Dropped on 5 and 25, Uthappa helped Bangalore take 52 runs off them, lifting his team from 119 after 17 overs to 171 for 5, when at one stage 150 looked difficult.

It was the speed and power with which Uthappa collected his runs that was dazzling: his last 39 came off ten balls. The over that swung the momentum Bangalore's way was the penultimate one, in which Uthappa - whose improvisation makes him the ideal Twenty20 batsman - struck three successive sixes off L Balaji to ransack 24 from six balls.

Until that explosion, Bangalore had struggled. From the time their talisman opener Jacques Kallis was bowled for 19 in 4.4 overs, ending a splendid run of four unbeaten innings, the home side failed to overcome Chennai's bowlers. On a juiced-up surface, an eagerly-awaited contest began with Chennai's new-ball duo wondering just what was needed to make a breakthrough. They thought they had success in the first over, when a peach of a delivery from Albie Morkel appeared to shave the outer edge of Kallis' bat, but it was not to be.

Manish Pandey rode his luck, following up an inside-edged four to fine leg with a top edge that dropped between two fielders, and then Kallis charged Morkel, slashing a thick outside edge that was lost in the lights by L Balaji at third man. Off the very next delivery, Kallis edged Morkel wide of a diving slip for four more.

Once Kallis went for 19, missing a straight one from Balaji, Bangalore's innings lost direction. Pandey continued to live dangerously without imposing himself. Then for the second time a wicket immediately followed a boundary. Rahul Dravid rocked back and dispatched Muttiah Muralitharan's fifth delivery for four; the sixth was a topspinner that pitched on middle and leg and beat the bat to crash into the stumps.

When the strategic time-out rolled around - that's the pace at which the innings panned out - Chennai had restricted Bangalore to their poorest start yet, 61 for 2. That soon became 63 for 3 when Pandey slogged Murali and was held by Suresh Raina at mid-on. However, Chennai proceeded to reprieve Uthappa and conceded substantial ground.

Confident after Uthappa's heroics, Bangalore began snuffing out the chase. Praveen Kumar has a knack of getting early wickets and troubling left-hand batsman, and he got Parthiv Patel to edge one in the first over. Chennai struggled during the Powerplay, finishing the six-over block on 29 for 1. Matthew Hayden called for the Mongoose immediately after and hit Kallis for three consecutive fours, but he and George Bailey were unable to get Anil Kumble away. Mixing flippers and googlies exceptionally, Kumble kept a check on runs and the pressure resulted in Hayden being run out by Rahul Dravid's underarm hit.

That breakthrough brought another, and R Vinay Kumar's perfect seam position dismissed Bailey for a woeful 18 from 27 balls. Vinay struck a bigger blow in his next over when he got Suresh Raina to slash to Kallis at third man, and then Kumble sent back M Vijay. The innings never recovered after four wickets had fallen for 17 runs. Vinay went for a few runs but finished with a four-wicket haul to help Bangalore surge ahead of Mumbai Indians in the points table.

Punjab hold nerve in Super Over

Kings XI Punjab 136 for 8 (Yuvraj 43, Murali 3-16, Morkel 2-23) tied with Chennai Super Kings 136 for 7 (Parthiv 57, Theron 2-17). Punjab won after Super Over

Mediocrity met mediocrity on Sunday night, and somehow produced the first tie of the third edition of the IPL, leading to a Super Over, which gave Kings XI Punjab an unlikely victory. Irfan Pathan and Yuvraj Singh managed 82 runs in the 10 overs they faced between them, but the others batted poorly to score just 54 in the other 10. In the chase, even after a 65-run opening stand, the Chennai Super Kings batsmen contrived to be needing 10 runs off the last over. Fittingly for a match of low quality, the last over of the regulation game - bowled by Irfan and faced by Albie Morkel and R Ashwin - read: edge for four, missed slog for two byes thanks to an overthrow, single, another edge for two, a missed waft, and a powerful, nervous hit straight to mid-off with one needed off the last ball.

Juan Theron, playing his first IPL match and Punjab's bowling hero in the regulation time, bowled Hayden off the second ball in the Super Over, and despite a slogged six from Suresh Raina, once again 10 were needed in the last over. Muttiah Muralitharan was hit for a six first ball by Mahela Jayawardene, but he came back with a wicket and a dot to set the match up again. Yuvraj chose that extremely nervous moment to execute a delicate reverse-sweep, a shot he hardly ever uses, to finish the game off with two balls to go.

By halftime, though, Murali, the second Sri Lankan spinner to bowl the losing Super Over in as many tied matches in IPL, wouldn't have expected to play any further role in the game, let alone bowl the pressure over. In regulation time, he was the perfect spy, taking out two of the most prolific batsmen from his country, with 3 for 16 in his four overs. It wasn't as if Chennai needed any extra-ordinary bowling effort: the Punjab batsmen were hapless again.

Pune and Kochi unveiled as new IPL franchises

Pune and Kochi were unveiled as the two new IPL franchises, joining the tournament from the 2011 edition. While Pune was bought by Sahara Adventure Sports Group for $370 million, the Kochi franchise was snapped up by Rendezvous Sports World Limited for $333.3 million. In fact, Sahara had the highest bids for three cities - Ahmedabad, Pune and Nagpur - but it eventually opted for Pune.

Unveiling the winners at the ITC Park Sheraton in Chennai on Sunday, Lalit Modi, the IPL commissioner said, "There were five qualified bids and the bidding was extremely competitive. I hope they make good business." He also indicated that the franchise fee for the two new teams was for 10 years.

The process was to have been completed on March 7 but was postponed by two weeks after the bidders and the BCCI objected to stiff financial clauses.

The IPL will now feature 10 teams and - if the current format is retained - a total of 94 games, from the existing 60. After the first season in 2008, the league has already expanded its reach to other centres such as Cuttack, Ahmedabad, Nagpur and Dharamsala.