High Batting Momentum gives Chargers first win

Deccan Chargers grabbed their first win of the tournament after beating Chennai with a powerful batting performance (Batting Momentum of 301) led by Andrew Symonds and Herschelle Gibbs.

Adam Gilchrist won the toss and elected to bat first on a belter of a pitch. He got his side off to a blazing start before they lost Gilchrist and VVS Laxman in the same over. They were 57 for two at the end of the Quick start period with Andrew Symonds and Herschelle Gibbs at the crease. The duo took their time to settle in and batted cautiously till the halfway mark. They went after the bowling from that point and dispatched them all round the park, sharing a third wicket partnership of 95 runs. Despite losing Gibbs and Symonds, the Chargers were able to add a total of 51 runs in the Extreme Performance period which pushed their score to 190 at the end of 20 overs.

With momentum on their side, the Chargers struck early with the ball. Chaminda Vaas picked up the wickets of Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina and Matthew Hayden in his first three overs, reducing Chennai Super Kings to 34 for four at the end of the Power Play overs. MS Dhoni tried to pull things back with a 38-run partnership with Justin Kemp for the fifth wicket followed by another 38-run stand with Albie Morkel before Symonds broke through his defences. Morkel struck some lusty blows towards the end of the innings but the match was well out of their reach by that point. They eventually finished with 159 for nine in their 20 overs.

Chaminda Vaas was adjudged Man of the Match for his figures of 3 for 21. He achieved a Bowling Efficiency of 171.