IPL 2024: All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja opens up about his role after starring for CSK against PBKS

Dharamsala (Himachal Pradesh) [India], May 5 (ANI): Chennai Super Kings star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja opened up about his role for the five-time champions after his efforts helped the visitors clinch a 28-run victory over the Punjab Kings on Sunday in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.
Jadeja came in to bat with CSK reduced to 101/5 at the scenic Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium. He played a game-changing knock of 43 off 26 deliveries, which was laced with three boundaries and two maximums.
With the ball, he scythed three important scalps while giving away just 20 runs in his four-over spell. He was adjudged Player of the Match for his influential performance and talked about his role for CSK.
"I wanted to build a partnership of 30-40 runs so that we have a platform for the end. The bowlers bowled well. My role is to build a partnership if we lose early wickets," Jadeja said after the game.
The clash between both teams marked the first game of the ongoing IPL at the HPCA Stadium, and batters from both teams struggled to put runs on the board. Some managed to get off to a good start but failed to build on it.
Jadeja talked about the challenges of playing at a new venue and said, "It was a day game so the wicket was slow. It was expected to be slow because it was quite warm. Always looks a flat wicket in powerplay. But as the ball gets older, it doesn't come on very well. When you're playing at a new venue, you don't have an idea of how the pitch will be. I felt we were 15-20 runs short."
Coming to the match, PBKS won the toss and elected to field first. CSK lost their wickets at regular intervals. It was knocks from Ravindra Jadeja (43 in 26 balls, with three fours and two sixes), Ruturaj Gaikwad (32 in 21 balls, with four boundaries and a six) and Daryl Mitchell (30 in 19 balls, with two fours and a six) that took CSK to a respectable 167/9 in their 20 overs.
Rahul Chahar (3/23) and Harshal Patel (3/24) were the pick of the bowlers for PBKS. Arshdeep Singh got two wickets, while Sam Curran got one too.
In the run-chase, PBKS lost two wickets early, with Tushar Deshpande (2/35) striking for Men in Yellow, but Prabhsimran Singh (30 in 23 balls, with two fours and two sixes) and Shashank Singh (27 in 20 balls, with four boundaries) helped them recover with a 53-run partnership.
However, Ravindra Jadeja (3/20), Mitchell Santner (1/10) and Simarjeet Singh (2/16) helped CSK make a stunning comeback and restrict Punjab to 139/9 in their 20 overs. (ANI)