Raina blitz in vain as Sehwag ton takes KXIP to IPL 7 final

Result: Kings XI Punjab beat Chennai Super Kings by 24 runs. Toss: CSK won the toss and chose to bowl first. Kings XI 226-6 in 20 overs: Did the Kings XI peak too early? Is Glenn Maxwell’s dream run over? Will Ashish Nehra shine again? All these questions were put to bed as Virender Sehwag (122 in 58b, 12x4, 8x6) simply demolished CSK’s bowling attack and scored only the second century of IPL 7. Sehwag and Manan Vohra put up a 110-run opening stand in just 10.4 overs — and their hitting was such that KXIP reached 50 in just 26 balls. Vohra was the first to go among the two, miscuing a pull shot which was taken by Suresh Raina at short mid wicket. But by then, the damage was done and Sehwag was also set. He cracked 12 fours and eight sixes and even MS Dhoni’s continuous advice and encouragement did not help his bowlers as memories of KXIP hammering them for 231 earlier in the season came back to haunt the yellow brigade. [caption id=“attachment_1550831” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  "My son called me up and told me his friends were teasing him that his papa isn’t scoring runs. I told him just wait, I will click in one match," Sehwag said post his innings. BCCI[/caption] Sehwag took a few deliveries on 99 but finally got a single to bring up his century (in 50 balls) — celebrating with a punch in the air and saying post-match: “My son called me up and told me his friends were teasing him that his papa isn’t scoring runs. I told him just wait, I will click in one match.” And as Sehwag was hitting at one end, the Maxwell vs R Ashwin narrative was unfolding at the other. Ashwin had laid down the gauntlet when he said after the the first qualifier that Maxwell should expect him to bowl over the wicket. Maxwell had the upper hand in the rivalry and it looked like that would continue when he swished his bat to send a six over mid-wicket in Ashwin’s over — before hitting one straight to Raina in the deep in the very next ball. Ashwin blew a flying kiss towards a visibly perturbed Maxwell who managed to score just 13 off six balls. But that was Ashwin’s only happy moment of the match — the offie leaked 44 runs in his quota of overs. Nehra and Ravindra Jadeja were worse, giving away 51 and 48 runs respectively. Sehwag took a particular liking towards Nehra and hammered him for back-to-back sixes as he came to bowl his third over. But it was to Nehra’s delivery that he eventually fell — Faf du Plessis taking a brilliant running catch in the covers when it looked like he was going to collide with teammates who were also running in for it. David Miller added a blistering 38 off 19 balls to give one final push to KXIP’s innings. CSK 202-7 in 20 overs: When Du Plessis top-edged his pull in just the second ball of the CSK innings and saw it pouched by George Bailey, most people thought that the chasing team would simply wilt under pressure. What they didn’t see coming was one of the most incredible innings in IPL history. Raina, walking out to bat for the first time since he was announced as skipper for India’s tour of Bangladesh, played just 25 balls in the middle. This is how those 25 balls were: 4, 1, 4, 4, 0, 6, 4, 0, 4, 4, 0, 4, 6, 0, 6, 6, 1, 1, 6, 6, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4. It equates to 87 runs scored at a strike-rate of 348.00. Long story short, it was madness. CSK were 100-2 in just six overs and heading for one of the most famous chases of the tournament when a mix-up between Brendon McCullum and Raina resulted in the Indian falling short as Bailey picked up the ball at point, swivelled and sent a direct hit. It was here that the wilting under pressure began. Dwayne Smith had already been dismissed for seven somewhere during that massacre Raina inflicted upon the Kings XI bowlers and it was up to McCullum and Jadeja to set about renewing the chase. When Raina returned to the dugout, CSK needed 127 runs from 83 balls — very doable. But Kings XI suddenly had an opportunity to put pressure on CSK and they went about doing exactly that. Parvinder Awana, who was hit for 33 in one over by Raina — completely turned it around in a single over (13th) when he removed Jadeja and Hussey in the space of four balls. CSK were suddenly 142-6 and in need of another herculean effort — which did not come. Ashwin was stumped in the 17th over as he charged Akshar Patel and missed and Dhoni was bowled by a Mitchell Johnson yorker, only to be called back because it was a no-ball. With two overs to go, CSK needed 54 runs. Dhoni flashed a four and hit a six over long-on before getting a lucky four byes in the 19th over. He then hit two fours and another six in the last over but CSK fell short by 24 runs. Turning point: Bailey pick up, swivel and direct hit to dismiss Raina. With that man at the crease, CSK were actually looking good to win this one. Man of the match: Virender Sehwag.