IPL 2020: MS Dhoni proud of 'close to perfect' display by CSK against SRH

Dubai, October 14: Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni describes his sides win over Sunrisers Hyderabad on Tuesday (October 13) in Dubai as a 'close to perfect show'.

Badly in need of a win, CSK pulled off a 20-run victory while defending 167 runs against Sunrisers with almost every player making a contribution. With this win, they moved to sixth place in the points table.

After suffering five defeats in seven matches, CSK came out with a different game-plan and it worked for them. And it started right from the toss as MS Dhoni won it and chose to bat first in an attempt to put an end to the trend of losing matches when chasing.

CSK sealed their third win of the and hope this will trigger a series of wins to come as they look to seal a play-off berth. Dhoni, whose teammates had not given him many opportunities to be proud of their performances thus far, said all that matters at the end of the day is the two points.

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"Ultimately what really matters is you getting two points. What T20s have shown is that there are a few games that don't go your way and then there are some that go your way even when you haven't earned it. Today I felt we did a very good job even in the batting," said Dhoni after the match.

While bowlers have played their part in most matches, batsmen have faltered, but Dhoni felt everything clicked against Sunrisers including the bowling.

"There was some purpose with the bat and the batsmen assessed the situation very well. With a total like 160, it all depends on the start you get in the first six overs.

"The fast bowlers did the job, the spinners came into play and it was one game that was as close to being perfect," he added.

From among a lot of changed tactics, CSK asked young Sam Curran to open the innings and Dhoni said it made sense.

"Sam Curran is a complete cricketer for us. You need a seaming all-rounder, he plays the spinners well and he can give us those 15-45 runs..... we used an extra spinner because an Indian batter hasn't done well for us. That''s why Curran went up and it wasn't fair on Jagadeesan as well to bat at seven or eight."

Dhoni quickly finished the quota of pacer Deepak Chahar, who bowled in tandem with Curran and he was extremely pleased with their show.

"There are some two paced balls, some swing and some don't swing, some get extra bounce. What was needed was good execution of the plans and that was done by the fast bowlers.

"A good left-armer is always good to have in the side. You keep wondering whether the ball would come in or leave the batsman. As the tournament progresses we'll get more comfortable with the death bowling, which is why we kept Sam away from the death and Thakur and Bravo took over. We'll get better."

Dhoni and co will next be in IPL 2020 action on Saturday (October 17) when they face Delhi Capitals in Sharjah.