These two teams weren’t even sure of a semi-final berth till the last few matches and today they have defeated two other teams which were seated comfortably at the top of the league table. Well, it all comes down to this – T20 is anybody’s game and the master of the day will make it through.

Emergence of the Younger Players

This edition of IPL has seen the emergence of a few exceptional cricket players from India. It was a remarkable platform for them to exhibit their talents. If it weren’t for the IPL, we wouldn’t have come to know of inspiring players like S Jakati, R Ashwin, Manish Pandey, Virat Kohli, B Akhil, Sangwan, Rahane, A Nayar, T Suman, R Jadeja, Sudeep Tyagi, Pinal Shah, Asnodkar, and list goes on. Their talents wouldn’t have been widely recognized by the media and public if it weren’t for the IPL. And a few with talent strong enough to pull victory to their side are sure to go places.

The Indian Premier League has given them the much required boost to the career and a chance for them to rub shoulders with some of the all time cricketing greats and even a chance to out-perform them. This is a and will be a great chance for local cricketers to make a mark on the international level. With domestic cricket in India almost always being neglected by the media, this can be their gateway to the great cricket world.

To read our previous posts on IPL click on the following links.

IPL Semifinal 2

IPL Semifinal 1

IPL Semifinals Preview

Vagaries of the IPL

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What a turn it has been for the two team lying at the bottom last year. The underdogs winning has always pleased the minds. Even halfway through the tournament Bangalore didn’t look that threatening. Now all of a sudden, they are knocking off every other team. They have won the last match against the other finalist with Manish Pandey hitting a superb century. Well, Manish was the Man of the Match for this semifinal too. He scored quick runs in the early overs putting the pressure on Chennai. And Dhoni’s team had yielded to that pressure. Hats off to Manish for another wonderful innings right when it was most needed.It was a crucial partner ship between him and Dravid who also chipped in with a number of boundaries.

One should really thank RP Singh for that. Yeah! If he had taken that catch in the last league match we wouldn’t have found a Pandey and he would’ve been lost in the crowds.A catch dropped did cost them their match but found a big hitter for India.

It was remarkable to see Kumble out performing Dhoni in every aspect. Age has done nothing to him. He is as young as ever. He has wonderfully adapted himself to the format of T20. That was missing in Dhoni’s game today. He seems to have succumbed to the pressure of being a good captain. We also have to appreciate Ray Jennings apart from Anil Kumble for bringing the boys together and making them gel together.Mally looked a happy man and looked great for partying. Of course, there’s enough reason to party, especially after making it to the final of one of India’s greatest cricket tournaments.

As far as Chennai’s performance was considered they didn’t fire at all. The overs soon after the strategic time out one expected at least some fireworks. But it didn’t come. Dhoni and Raina relied too much on singles and wasted opportunities. As i said in the previous post, it is the Australian mentality to go after the best performer, and that was what required off Chennai. Instead they tried whiling off the spell of Kumble and vd Merwe. Even during bowling, Dhoni didn’t properly utilize his bowlers at the right time. The fielding was poor and they could have done much much better. All these factors combined to bring about the downfall of one of the favorites to win the IPL.

Instead, it is the underdogs fighting it out in tomorrow’s final. Yet, it going to be cracker of a match and would make a great match to watch.

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Even after winning the toss Gilchrist wanted to field first just when everyone wanted them to come out and bat first. After an impressive display by Ryan Harris in the first over getting two quick wickets, Sehwag and Dilshan took their team to a safe total of around 150. RP Singh did well though he leaked quite a few runs. He has the Purple cap on him and looks confident to defend it.

The chase began with Gilly scoring 5 fours in the first over off Delhi best bowler so far, Dirk Nannes. It has always been the Australian mentality to attack the best player of the team and the team captain and lower their morale. And the wicket-keeper batsman did just that. He then went on to score quick runs of almost every other player. He hit the Delhi Captain’s only over in the IPL for 25 runs which included three sixes. It was Gilly’s day and no one could stop such a player when gets to his attacking best.Even though he got out in the 10th over he has done enough damage. The middle order of the Chargers just had to hang out there and score singles to ensure a win. They did just that with Symonds and Suman getting a few boundaries as well.

Poor Delhi. Even after being pretty consistent throughout the series they end up losing in the semi-finals. It goes to prove what I’ve been repeatedly saying that its anybody’s game in the T20. A side which has been doing everything right can lose it all in the end. Thats what has happened to Delhi and they’ll be regretting their decision to use Glenn McGrath I guess. They didn’t feel his need so far in the tournament but they did need such a classic player especially when a hurricane like Gilcrisht hits you hard. Bye Bye Delhi see you in next year’s IPL.

And for the Deccan Chargers, it’ll be a wonderful day. Their captain took a bold decision after winning the toss and single-handedly went on to prove that his decision was correct. This is what we call ‘GETHU’. And Gilchrist would alway be GETHU. After languishing at the bottom of the table in last year’s Indian Premier League, this is a wonderful show by them. They have done this with almost the same set of players which they had last year. Entering the finals itself is a great task and they’ve done just that. Who knows they might even walk away with the IPL Trophy (The diamond studded one which they show atleast 10 times during the course of a match). Go Chargers..!!! Its is gonna be a GETHU finals on Sunday I guess.

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Four teams have made that decisive cut to enter the semi finals, with that last league match deciding who plays who in the semi finals. Let us have a brief analysis of the performances of the semi finalists.

Delhi Daredevils – Leading the pack with 20 points. This was the team which had assured itself of a semi-final spot after its 9th match itself and had a lot of opportunity to experiment and try out other players. It’d be good for them that their openers and other top order batsmen which includes Gambhir, Warner, Sehwag, Dilshan, de Villiers, etc are all in great form and also their bowling department led by Nehra is doing particulary well. Incidentally Nehra with 18 Wkts is also a serious contender for the Purple Cap. So after getting the team to proper shape, Sehwag would be hoping that they fire on all cylinders in the first Semis to cement their finals slot.

Chennai Super Kings -After that unsteady start to the tournament the team made sure that they do well enough to secure a semis berth. They are a team which had been performing consistently with the bat and the ball in all the matches. Though their fielding hadn’t been up to the mark, they made sure that their performance with the bat and ball overshadowed their poor fielding. Their openers have been performing well and it is probably the only team to have utilised its first six overs to the full extent and also the middle order chipping in with some useful runs.

Royal Challengers Bangalore -They are the team with the maximum momentum. The team which had been written off as a test team last year and the team which had a disastrous start to this season performed extremely well to clinch the third spot in the league standings this year. They have won four matches consecutively and have the much required momentum with them. They also seem to have discovered new talent among their players. Its a positive sign and all one can expect them to do is to put on a great show against the Chennai and who knows they might even upset the Super Kings. They don’t have the pressure and reaching this position itself can be termed as an achievement and anything more would be a bonus.

Deccan Chargers – After a wonderful start to the season 4 wins from 4 matches, they just managed to get 3 more wins from the remaining 10 matches. In the last few matches the battling order of the Deccan has collapsed after the departure of the openers and they relied heavily Rohit Sharma in these matches. He did it in the match against KKR but couldn’t manage it in the other two matches. Its time the team has a reality check and make sure that its batsmen especially Symonds stay till the end and finish it off for their team.

Fixtures -

1st Semi-Final

Friday 22 May 20:00 IST  – Delhi Daredevils v Deccan Chargers
SuperSport Park, Centurion

2nd Semi-Final

Saturday 23 May 20:00 IST - Chennai Super Kings v Royal Challengers Bangalore
New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

An exciting contest on the cards. Enjoy the Semi-Finals.

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Till yesterday, there were five teams vying for the three semi-final berths.And today the struggle is almost over with two matches remaining one of which would decide who plays against who in the semi-finals to be held on 22st and 23nd of May.

Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab who were fierce contenders for the semi-final spot were eliminated in today’s crucial matches. The Knight Riders team fought hard to end their tournament with a victory, which they eventually achieved, thereby putting Rajasthan’s hopes to an end. In the second match, the Chennai side cemented their place in the semis with a stunning victory which has pushed Punjab almost to the brink of elimination.

The best Punjab can do is to hope that Bangalore loses by a very very large margin such that their NRR becomes less than theirs. In case that happens, not only will it open the doors for Punjab but will also be a stunning example that almost ANYTHING can happen in T20 cricket.

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