Image Credit- AP
IPL 2024* has seen 200 or more goals scored in just one game since match number 46, which took place in Chennai on April 28. Six games without 200 is that. The highest in these matches is 169, with 201 plays 200 being the lone exception. These are far from the record-breaking performances we have grown accustomed to. Are pitches becoming sluggish and weary? Are par scores declining as well? Ruturaj Gaikwad said, “The way the wicket [in Dharamsala] played in the second innings, definitely I’d say par score,” following Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) 28-run victory over Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Sunday night with 167 runs for 9.
“Everyone believed the wicket was slow, it was coming slow off the wicket, even low bounce,” Gaikwad said on the host broadcast after the win, which took CSK to No. 3 on the points table. “But with the start we got [CSK were 60 for 1 after the powerplay], we thought we could push till 180-200. But we lost two wickets in consecutive balls, and then we thought probably 160-170 would be a good score, or just par, here and there, ten runs short. But the way the wicket played in the second innings, definitely I’d say [167 was a] par score.”
After a period of slowness, Ravindra Jadeja came into play, accelerating the pace with a 43-ball century from No. 6 and then making effective use of the pitch to finish with a 3-for-20 total.
“It was a day game, so the wicket was slow, which we expected,” he said. “We did well in the [batting] powerplay, but then we couldn’t build partnerships. We wanted to build partnerships, so in the last four-five overs, we could score quickly. Partnerships didn’t happen, but as a bowling group, we did well. Tushar [Deshpande] got important wickets in the powerplay. Then Mitch [Santner] and I did well in the middle overs.
“During the powerplay, the wicket always looks flat. But as the ball gets a little old, the ball doesn’t come on to the bat. Especially at a new venue, you don’t know what to expect. That’s why we felt we were 15-20 runs short but we bowled well in the powerplay and middle overs, didn’t bowl loose balls.”