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CSK made a formidable 192
Chennai Super Kings thrashed Mumbai Indians by 48 runs in the first qualifier of the Indian Premier League at Ferozshah Kotla on Tuesday to book their place in the final.
It will be Chennai's fifth final appearance in the six years the tournament has been played. Mumbai will have another opportunity in the second qualifiers at Eden Gardens on Friday.
Electing to bat, Chennai scored a mammoth 192 for one in their stipulated 20 overs.
Michael Hussey and Suresh Raina took the Mumbai Indians attack to the cleaners as Chennai Super Kings posted a mammoth 192 for one.
Michael Hussey reclaimed the orange cap
Michael Hussey delighted the sell-out crowd with his amazing array of strokes as he scored an unbeaten 86 off 58 balls with the help of 10 boundaries and two shots over the fence.
CSK's 'Man Friday' Hussey started off with a boundary as Mitchell Johnson fed him one on his legs.
The initial momentum that they got helped the Chennai side get into the groove. Hussey in particular was a delight to watch.
When Johnson provided width, he played the square cut with ferocity, when Malinga bowled a slower one, he was quick to judge the length of the delivery and dispatch it through covers. A whopping 47 runs came in the Powerplay and Hussey was already up and racing.
In the process he overtook Chris Gayle (706) in the race for the Orange Cup. With Bangalore out of the tournament, the Australian is all set to finish the tournament as the top-scorer.
Pollard got Mumbai's lone wicket
The 50 came up in the seventh over but Murali Vijay (23, 2x4) again frittered away a good start.
Kieron Pollard proved to be the man with 'Golden Arm' as Vijay slogged lazily and was holed out in the deep mid-wicket region by Dwayne Smith.
That proved to be the lone success for Mumbai. Although Harbhajan Singh went wicket-less, his figures of none for 26 were decent while pace duo of Lasith Malinga (0-45) and Mitchell Johnson (0-40) gave away 85 runs in eight overs between them.
Munaf Patel's (0-32) poor effort also didn't help the cause.
Raina made a strokeful 82 not out
Hussey was ably complemented by the ever-dependable Suresh Raina who smashed his way to a breathtaking 42-ball-82 that had five boundaries and an equal number of huge sixes.
The introduction of Raina proved to be a shot in the arm for Hussey as both players carted the MI bowlers to all parts of the ground.
Raina's sixes were a treat to watch, especially the one over extra cover which was hit with a lot of panache.
Hussey, Raina added 140 runs
The duo put on astonishing 140 runs for the second wicket in 12.4 overs as CSK put on an imposing total on a low and slow Ferozeshah Kotla track after electing to bat.
The duo scored 123 runs in the last 10 overs with both going on the rampage. The southpaws were on song as they played some breathtaking shots in the cover region.
Both matched each other stroke for stroke with MI bowlers dishing out one full-toss after other.
Dwayne Smith top-scored for Mumbai
Chasing a formidable target, Mumbai were in with a chance till Dwayne Smith was at the crease.
The opener's 28-ball 68 was inclusive of six boundaries and five huge sixes.
The West Indies player reached his half century off just 21 balls, the third fastest fifty in the tournament after Chris Gayle (17 balls) and Kieron Pollard (20).
Smith also added 75 runs for the second wicket with Dinesh Karthik (11). However, his dismissal led to a slew of wickets for Chennai.
Jadeja took three wickets
Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo were the best bowlers for Chennai, both picking up three wickets apiece.
Jadeja took three for 31, including the vital wickets of Dwayne Smith, Dinesh Karthik and Kieron Pollard.
Bravo accounted for Harbhajan Singh, Mitchell Johnson and Lasith Malinga, his three wickets taking his tally for the tournament to 28 and helping him reclaim the purple cap.