Clarke criticizes CSK’s lack of intent against KKR; Chawla praises Narine’s match-winning spell

“The pitch appeared quite challenging for batting, with some movement early on from the new ball and definitely some turn,” said JioStar expert Clarke. “As for their approach—there was a clear lack of intent. Right now, it looks like they're playing it very safe, either aiming to get close to a win or simply trying to avoid a heavy loss,” he added.

Hyderabad: Michael Clarke, former Australian captain, said the Chennai Super Kings was down on confidence and got their plan wrong against Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL home game at Chennai on Friday night.

“The wicket looked quite tough to bat on. There was a little bit of movement with the new ball and certainly some spin,” JioStar expert Clarke said.

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“ And their intent—well, there was no intent. At the moment, it seems like a very conservative approach—just trying to get close to winning or avoid a big defeat,” he said.

“Instead, they should throw it all on the line, risk everything, and try to win the game. That kind of change is easier said than done. Just like a good, confident feeling can become infectious in a winning
dressing room, the same applies when you’re losing. That losing feeling lingers, and it’s hard to get rid of sometimes,” Clarke explained.

For his part, former India leg-spinner Piyush Chawla praised KKR’s Sunil Narine for yet another clinical bowling display.

“It’s been so many years, and yet batters still struggle to read Sunil Narine. These kinds of surfaces really suit his bowling because he’s never too full, never too short,”Chawla said.

“The pace he bowls at is perfect—it doesn’t give batters much time. We saw that in Rahul Tripathi’s dismissal, and even Ravindra Jadeja was late while trying to play the late cut,” he said.

“We’ve seen Narine get Mahendra Singh Dhoni out in a similar fashion before. While we said it’s a good wicket to bowl on, you still need to bowl well—and that’s exactly what Sunil did today. He deserves a lot
of credit,” Chawla said.

“At this stage, I think Chennai Super Kings should consider bringing in youngsters. Someone like Andre Siddarth, who is a solid middle-order batter, deserves a chance. You’ve already seen enough of
Rahul Tripathi and Deepak Hooda,” he said.