The gunslingers of Chenni Super Kings inspire fear

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Have willow in hand, so go ahead and have a bash. It’s a very simple approach to T20 cricket but easily the most effective way to settle arguments in the shortest format, which is what the Chenni Super Kings did to dispatch Mumbai Indians who everyone said had an edge over them in the eliminator.

Badrinath, a bit of a one-pacer, is not the most gifted or innovative batsman but the manner in which he came out of a strategy break determined to go for the bowling represented a statement of intent from the defending champions.

Soon all hell broke loose for the Indians. Dhoni’s whirligig stroke — the helicopter takeoff shot — off Malinga over deep mid wicket to a ball pitched up in the blockhole around off stump that disappeared towards MG Road in Bengaluru was the highlight of the evening. Never mind if in proper cricket they would call it the shot to cow’s corner.

Dwayne Bravo, the Trinidadian with that distinctive jolly spirit, went one better. To say a batsman ‘threw the kitchen sink at the ball’ is to indicate he gave it the good old-fashioned wallop.

Bravo launched himself at a delivery wide of off stump as if he were Didier Drogba latching on to a loose ball at the top of the penalty box, like a wolf swooping on an open pen of innocent sheep.

He gave it a treatment that would have provoked the society for the prevention of cruelty to leather spheres, if there were one. Six over extra cover was the result – amazing.

As a team, CSK resemble a pack of gunslingers. You could say they are somewhat top heavy on batting and not so hot on the bowling front.

Batsmen can win you T20 games by giving the bowlers and fielders the 20 runs above par to defend, which is what distinguishes the defending champions from the pack.

It was also a good toss to lose on a pitch that stays the same the length of a T20 game. They were put in and they could \play to their strengths if they could recover in time from the poor start against a couple of balls that swung.

There is no reason CSK won’t go the distance now unless Sehwag, Warner, Jayawardene and Taylor come to the party on Friday with the same virtuosity in strokeplay as the Chennaiites.

Yes, the willow is going to determine who will win IPL-5, which is another reason why DD and KKR must fear the gunslingers of CSK.