IPL Qualifier 2: CSK draws strength from experience of winning crunch games, says du Plessis

Chennai Super Kings opener Faf du Plessis credited the team's success to a knack of forging partnerships.

Published : May 11, 2019 00:25 IST

Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis added 81 runs for the opening wicket.

Chennai Super Kings had lost five of its last seven matches coming into Friday night's qualifier against the Delhi Capitals. But man-of-the-match Faf Du Plessis, whose fifty combined with fellow opener Shane Watson's half-century helped Chennai into its eighth IPL final, felt Chennai's experience of winning crunch games in the past came in handy.

"We didn't have the best run in the last five or six games, but we do have a lot of confidence as a team that's won a lot of big games. We drew a lot of strength from that," Du Plessis said at the post match presentation.

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Commenting on the nature of the Vizag wicket, Du Plessis noted, "In the previous game we watched two nights ago, the wicket looked really good, the  guys were playing some big shots. We were expecting that kind of wicket, but it didn't turn out that way."

Chasing 148, Du Plessis and Watson added 81 for the first wicket before the former holed out to Boult for 50 off 39 balls. And the Protean credited put down the team's success to a knack of forging partnerships. "Our strength is to get  partnerships going and extend that, even if we take our time initially. We've got a lot of good batsmen down the order, and we  back them to catch up with the required rate," he noted.

CSK will take on the Mumbai Indians in the final on Sunday.