Ever changing theory of utility: Chennai Super Kings makes four changes to team, defeat Delhi Daredevils by 13 runs

PUNE: Four changes. It is uncharacteristic of Chennai Super Kings and also of MS Dhoni. Even when he was at helm of the Test side that suffered back-to-back 4-0 defeats in England and Australia, he didn’t make as many changes. It was one of the criticisms against him.But that’s how Dhoni is. He likes to stick with his players, especially when someone is going through a bad patch. Until and unless something is forced, Dhoni isn’t the sort of captain who likes changing combinations for the sake of it.

So when Dhoni revealed at the toss on Monday there were quite a few changes for the match against Delhi Daredevils, it was not surprising that he forgot the players who had come in. He mistakenly said David Willey was playing, while it was Lungi Ngidi making IPL debut. He was even trolled on the Chennai Super Kings’ Twitter handle. But he knew that with three matches in six days, the oldest team in this tournament needed rotation.

With Deepak Chahar injured, Chennai had to make one forced change. And with Imran Tahir not having the best of times and death bowling a big concern, there was always a possibility of another. Two was what most expected, but Chennai doubled it. In a way, it was not entirely surprising as most teams go for big squads for a reason. They mostly have a primary target and a like-for-like player as secondary option — one being a foreigner and the other Indian – as it gives the team balance in case they decide to tinker with the playing  XI.

So out went leg-spinner Tahir and in came Karn Sharma. Sam Billings, floater in the middle-order, made way for Faf du Plessis, who could be accommodated only at the top. So Ambati Rayudu was pushed to the middle-order. It was a bold move to ask the team’s most in-form player to forego his place and come down the order. They had done it against SunRisers Hyderabad and it worked splendidly. But was it to work a second time?

Though Rayudu didn’t have to perform another rescue act against Delhi — he had to consolidate after Chennai lost two quick wickets, of Du Plessis and Suresh Raina — he ensured they didn’t throw away the foundation laid by Shane Watson with a well-paced 41 off 24. The man who replaced him at the top — Du Plessis — had a scratchy outing, but ensured Chennai got a strong start. He didn’t set the stage on fire, but rotated the strike and allowed Watson to tee off from the other end, as they added 102 in 10.5 overs.

While Billings’ omission wasn’t expected, Rayudu’s form allowed Dhoni to risk it. His role is not different from what S Badrinath played during his stint with Chennai, for which coach Stephen Fleming called him the most valuable player. While Willey was expected to be part of the XI because he can also bolster the batting, Chennai knew it was bowling which needed attention. So pace is what they believed would work on a pitch with a green tinge on it. For Chahar, they brought in KM Asif, a Kerala speedster, more or less a like-for-like replacement. He conceded 43 off three overs, but got Prithvi Shaw and Colin Munro to derail Delhi’s chase.

Ngidi showed Chennai what they had been missing. After keeping Delhi quiet in the powerplay, conceding seven of his first two overs, he returned at the death to dismiss Rishabh Pant (79 off 45) as Chennai returned to winning ways without breaking a sweat. Karn had little say in the match as he didn’t even get a chance to roll his arm over.
venkatakrishna@newindianexpress.com