Chennai Outclass Bangalore To Retain IPL Title

Chennai Outclass Bangalore To Retain IPL Title

Murali Vijay played an outstanding innings of 95 to set up a winning score for the Chennai Super Kings

©REUTERS / Action Images

Chennai Super Kings 205-5 (Vijay 95) beat
Royal Challengers Bangalore 147-8 by 58 runs
Indian Premier League 2011 final, Chennai
Scorecard | Report by Chetan Narula

The Chennai Super Kings blew away the Royal Challengers Bangalore, winning by 58 runs, in the 2011 IPL final at Chennai to clinch the title in emphatic style.

This was their second IPL crown in four years of competition and they have made the knock-out stage every single year. For Bangalore this was second time unlucky in the finals after they finished runners-up in 2009.

Chennai won the toss and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni didn’t have any hesitation opting to bat first in the high stakes game. Michael Hussey and Murali Vijay gave them a flying start bringing up the 50 in only six overs and then went on to put on a record partnership for the first wicket.

The duo added 159 runs during their stay at the wicket spanning 14.5 overs. Hussey seemed to play a holding role and even so made 63 runs off 45 balls, with three fours and three sixes. But it was Vijay's belligerence put paid to Bangalore’s chances. He made 95 runs off only 52 balls, hitting four fours and six sixes.

Vijay was out in the 19th over, cramping up obviously and exhaustion robbing him a chance to complete a chanceless hundred. Dhoni who had promoted himself to number three garnered 29 runs with Vijay in quick time, taking most of the strike himself.

He scored a blazing 22 runs off 13 balls with two sixes. The following batsmen all tried to slog with around ten balls remaining, as Chris Gayle took two wickets in the last over, and for a minute it appeared as if Chennai might just fall short of 200. But Dwayne Bravo came in and hit the last ball for six, taking them to 205 for five.

The runchase was all about what Gayle could do. Unfortunately he was out for a three-ball duck as Ravichandran Ashwin had him caught behind the wicket.

Mayank Agarwal was out for ten and they were already 16 for two in the third over. If any hope was remaining, it was in Virat Kohli who tried his best in the losing cause, scoring 35 runs off 32 balls.

But that the top score of the innings was 42 runs by Saurabh Tiwary who came down later in the order told a tale of woe for Bangalore. Ashwin took three for 16 in four overs and Shadab Jakati finished with two for 21 as Chennai outplayed their opponents on the day. 

© Cricket World 2011