Gillies edge Dragons in a thriller

It was a tale of two contrasting halves of the Chepauk Super Gillies batting as they dominated the first 10 and fell flat in the next. A century partnership in the first 12 overs and losing six wickets in the last 20 balls was what Chepauk Super Gillies managed as they ended at 172/6 in 20 overs.

In reply, the Dragons lost steam in between but some hefty blows from R Ashwin and M Ashwin (22, 14 balls) made sure the Dragons reached till the end, but couldn’t cross the finish line as they fell six runs short at 166/5.

While it was R Ashwin (49 off 23 balls) and N Jagadeesan (60 off 53 balls) to shine with the bat for Dragons, it was D Tamil Kumaran who saved the game for the Gillies with a good final over, that included a no-ball. Needing 19 in the final over, they could only score 12.

The Super Gillies climbed to the second spot with six points on the table while Dindigul Dragons held on to the top spot with eight.

Earlier, Ravichandran Ashwin called it wrong at the toss and Chepauk Super Gillies skipper had qualms in deciding to bat first. R Ashwin opened the bowling for Dragons and it looked like they would call the shots as Thalaivan survived two close calls for leg-before wicket.

Not the kind to stay quiet for a long time, Thalaivan opened the sluice gates when he jumped down the track to Guru Kedarnath and smacked him over long-on for a six.

From then the openers stole the show as the Dragons were sent on a leather hunt. Gopinath and Thalaivan found the gaps at will and took the arial route often with huge success.

R Ashwin tried five different bowlers in the power-play but couldn’t get the breakthrough. Gopinath was dropped by the Dragons skipper on 16 of Sunny Kumar Singh when Ashwin and Kedarnath went for the ball and neither called for the catch.

With the power-play yielding 60 runs, Chepauk Super Gillies were off to a flyer.

Thalaivan was not afraid to use his feet and scored freely on both sides of the wicket. He even delicately guided the ball past short third man and even swept with ease as he scored on all sides of the wicket.

The openers brought the 100-run partnership in 62 balls, the third of the TNPL, and scored their respective half-centuries too soon.

Dragons could have got the breakthrough in the last ball of the 12th over when Thalaivan called for a quick single after guiding the ball to short-third man only to find Kedarnath pick up the ball in an acrobatic fashion. Dragons keeper N Jagadeesan, however, couldn’t collect the ball clean but dislodged the bails.

Left-arm spinner M S Sanjay got the big wicket of the dangerous Thalaivan in the 16th over when the batsman danced down the track only to lose the trajectory of the ball and miss it. The ball hit the timber and the Dragons heaved a sigh of relief. Thalaivan scored 72 in 50 balls and the damage was done as Super Gillies scored 144 by then.

The Chepauk middle-order batsmen undid the hard work put by the openers in the 18th over when they lost the plot and lost three wickets to Sanjay. Sathish, who walked in at number three, was the first to go when he skied to long-off for Subramania Siva to make no mistake.

Two balls later, Gopinath pulled a short ball to M Ashwin at deep midwicket, who took a good running catch to his left. It was then the turn of J Gowjith Subash to walk back afyer he stepped out only for Jagadeesan to no mistake this time in removing the bails in a flash.

Chepauk Super Gillies lost six wickets in 20 balls scoring only 28 runs (74 in the last ten after hitting 98 in the first 10) to end at 172/6.

Dragons, who had a huddle before getting off the pitch for the break, came out with a plan and paced their innings well. The power-play was well negotiated by openers Jagadeesan and V Ganga Sridhar Raju for 43 runs.

Antony Dhas broke the opening partnership when Jagadeesan steered to short third man and tried to steal a single. Dhas had a go at the wickets and caught Raju short of his crease.

Left-arm spinner Sai Kishore and medium pacer Yo Mahesh choked the Dragons’ batsman with minimum width and a teasing length and the boundaries dried up.

Ashwin Venkatraman was the next to go when he stepped out to Alexander and missed the line for Gopinath to stump him off in a flash. Dragons were soon three down when Jagadeesan sent back V Subranmnia Siva off a quick call. Mahesh, at mid-off, pounced on the ball in a flash and Dhas dislodged the stumps in time to catch Siva out of the crease.

It turned worse for the Dragons when R Vivek had to retire hurt with severe cramps. R Ashwin joined Jagadeesan in the middle and the two put on a 34-run partnership in 28 balls. But some excellent bowling by Super Gillies ensured that the asking run-rate climbed to astronomical numbers every over.

A few hits out of the park by Jagadeesan and Ashwin didn’t help as the Super Gillies bowlers gave little away.

Just when the Dragons fans were stooping, top-scorer Jagadeesan miscued a hit to short third man where Dhas pouched the ball safely but an altercation between Kishore, Jagadeesan and R Ashwin fired things up and the shouts were back again in the stands.

However, R Ashwin and M Ashwin took it till the end with a 57-run partnership in 25 balls with some hefty blows but Dragons fell short by six runs in the end.

Brief scores: Chepauk Super Gillies 172 for 6 (Gopinath 76, 53b, 4x9, 1x6, Thalaivan Sargunam 72, 50b, 4x4, 4x6, MS Sanjay 4/21) beat Dindigul Dragons 166 for 5 (N Jagadeesan 60, 53b, 6x4, 1x6, R Ashwin 49, 23b, 4x4, 4x6, R Alexander 1/25)