MI vs CSK, 1st Match at Abu Dhabi, IPL, Sep 19 2020 - Match Result

10:20pm Right, sorry for the confusion on the Man of the Match! It goes to Ambati Rayudu, who was by some distance the best batsmen tonight. And with that, we close our live coverage for the day. What a comeback it has been - it was rusty and creaky in some parts, but this was proper IPL intensity. Chennai Super Kings starting strong like they do. Defending champions, Mumbai missing out on some key strategic moments that they will think about. Some obvious concerns with their bowling too that they'll need to paper over. We'll see how they bounce back. For now - watch out for the post-match stuff coming out tonight and in the morning. We'll see you tomorrow. Good night and welcome back!

Ambati Rayudu is the Man of the Match.: "Normally we also train in summer. We were really eager. The surface was good. It was doing a bit with the new ball, but once the dew came in, it got easier. We practised in Chennai and Dubai. That really helped."

MS Dhoni: It's a very different, doesn't feel like a post-match presentation. Overall - [liked] how we played after a very long time. You want to assess the conditions and give your best. I felt we took time to gauge how to bowl in these conditions. The MI batsmen batted well, they were able to put pressure. Overall plenty of positives, but plenty of areas to improve. Specially with the timing, if you bat second, teams will realise it will swing till the dew comes in. These are the learnings. Overall a very good first game to play and no injuries - most of us are retired. [Experience] does pay off. Especially these days 300 ODIs with three-match series, it's a big feat. You need a good mix of youngsters and experience. What really helps youngsters in the IPL is the fact that there are lots of senior players from different countries for 60-70 days.

[With] Curran - that's one thing we haven't done [experimenting]. At some point of time we need to give Jadeja and somebody like Sam to express themselves. This was the ideal way - one legspinner, one left arm spinner. We felt it was ideal to intimidate the bowler, a psychological thing - to say he's been sent to do one job.

Okay hang on, we're not sure Curran is Man of the Match. More of the presentation coming up.

Sam Curran: I was actually really excited when I was coming to Chennai. Haven't met a lot of guys, haven't had much to think, landed two days ago and straight out there. To be honest, very surprised I went in but he's a genius, he obviously thought something. I think so [left-right combo], that was the over we wanted to target - a six or out approach.

Rohit Sharma: Batsmen didn't carry on once they got in like Du Plessis and rayed did. That's something we failed to do. But credit to CSK bowlers, they kept us guessing all the time. Something for us to learn. Still early days, but credit to CSK. We all want to start really well, it's crucial in this tournament to get that balance right. A few things for us to learn from this game, we made mistakes. Hopefully we can rectify those and come back stronger. It was completely from what we're used to, having so many people cheer for us at the stadium. But I think IPL did a great Jon making sure there was some noise going around the stadium. We've got to understand and adapt to the pitches. The pitch got Better towards the end with end ew coming. It's not that we've not played at bigger grounds. We've got to hit those gaps and make sure we get singles and doubles, it's not just about hitting the shots. It's all about understanding what one needs to do.

Gaurab Khatiwad: "If I had to pick one ball that changed the momentum of csk chase that would be bumrah's no ball in 6th over."

Cricfanalways: "So the 2d player delivered !!!"

Naveed Malik: "Sam Curran is such a gun player, going to be a big player for the future for England and across the world if he isn't already!"

Ajay: "rayudu bouta make another cryptic tweet for not getting MoM... but jokes apart he should've gotten it superb innings"

9:51pm Chennai Super Kings finally get one over Mumbai after five attempts. This will feel sweet. They've come back strongly twice in this match - once in the field, and then after a disaster Powerplay with the bat. And it's happened through their newbies - tidy stuff from Piyush Chawla, and then the perfect strategic use of Sam Curran, whose 18 off 6 pretty much ended things for Mumbai. It is now eight years since Mumbai Indians have won their opening match of the season. What a return to the big stage for Ambati Rayudu, whose last involvement at this level was flavoured with controversy around a World Cup exclusion. It's been over a year though, and he certainly isn't carrying any baggage. A pristine knock in the company of Faf du Plessis, who played his anchor role to perfection and was there to finish it off at the end.

It will be Trent Boult trying to defend five against two of the most experienced batsmen in modern cricket. Third man in, point in, cover in, and fine leg in. He's around the wicket.

Abhishek: "I dont know how.. but i want Curran opening the innings fro CSK... Pinch hitter, CSK would definitely appreciate not having a slow start.."
Felix Pinto: "Here comes that decisive penultimate over!"

Was it leftie v leftie? Was it coz the wind was blowing towards the left-handers leg side? Could be either or all. But the Curra gambit has worked so far. It has to work against Bumrah though for CSK to win this...

Sam Curran has come out. Still going with the leftie v leftie ploy, it seems.

Rajkumar M: "What happened to Hardik Pandya? Why isn't he bowling today?" --- Not sure but a good guess is that he's coming back from a back injury. Krunal has the ball now. Jadeja probably came out ahead of Dhoni to try and neutralise him, let's see how that goes...

Pattinson goes around the wicket

Birud Sindhav: "That catch was in the same league as any of Faf's 3 catches. "

Milan Panth: "I think everyone saw that coming. Both of the batsmen were really uncomfortable with Chahar. Interesting match to witness!"

HarryFD: "Watch every bowler try the chahar run up now"