Ravindra Jadeja worked his magic taking three wickets in a space of eight balls to rip the heart out of KKR's batting as Chennai Super Kings were left to chase a manageable target of 137 for 9 in an IPL match here Monday.
Having lost back-to-back games on the road, CSK were back in their element on a familiar Chepauk turf where the ball gripped and allowed Jadeja (3/18 in 4 overs) and Maheesh Theeksana (1/28 in 4 overs) were brilliant with both their line and length.
While KKR lost Phil Salt (0) cheaply off the very first delivery, Sunil Narine (27 off 20 balls) and young Angkrish Raghuvanshi (24 of 18 balls) continued from where they had left against DC, chancing their arms and adding 56 in Powerplay but once spinners came into operation it all fell apart.
With the ball gripping and not coming onto the bat, Narine's lofted shot was holed out in the deep and Raghuvanshi's inexperience became his undoing as he played an indiscreet reverse sweep to a straight delivery.
Venkatesh Iyer (3) was ill at ease against Theekshana, who got his mojo back after being hit for two sixes in his first over and then Jadeja got his man, who wanted to slog out of trouble. With three wickets in eight balls, Jadeja seemed to snatch the momentum decisively in favour of CSK.
Shreyas Iyer (34 off 32 balls) never got going and Rinku Singh (9 off 14 balls) and Andre Russell (10 off 10 balls) couldn't up the ante as the canny Mustafizur Rahman (2/22) and Tushar Deshpande (3/33) were fantastic at the death. Both took pace off the deliveries and bowled wide lines which was out of the hitting range of the two finishers. The catching in the deep was also top notch for CSK as KKR batters had a forgettable day in the office.
