Small spells for bowlers played big role in win in humid Abu Dhabi: Dhoni

It was the second of the weekend's afternoon matches in the UAE leg and in the end, CSK survived the twists and turns and some heart-stopping moments to emerge victories in the match, reaching 172/8 in response to KKR's 171/6.

Abu Dhabi: Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has said that the fact that the bowlers were made to bowl "small spells" in the hot and humid conditions of Abu Dhabi kept them fresh all through the match and played a vital role in the three-time IPL champions winning the contest by two wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders in a dramatic fashion on Sunday.

It was the second of the weekend's afternoon matches in the UAE leg and in the end, CSK survived the twists and turns and some heart-stopping moments to emerge victories in the match, reaching 172/8 in response to KKR's 171/6.

"I think in patches we bowled well. Bowlers took responsibility. Not to forget it was hot and humid. It's an afternoon game so it's not easy for the fast bowlers. We tried to give them smaller spells -- one or two over spells -- to keep their energy level up," said Dhoni in the post-match virtual press conference.

"We did pretty well in bowling. 170 was a par score because it was not like yesterday's (September 25) game where the wicket was slow. When spinners - Ravindra Jadeja -- was bowling you could figure out it was coming on nicely and was not stopping a lot. But the kind of start we got, I think KKR deserve an upper hand for the simple reason they made a game out of it," added Dhoni, whose side is leading the standing with 16 points from 10 games, after having won eight matches.

The Rishabh Pant-led Delhi Capitals too have 16 points from 10 games but are second in the standing because of an inferior net run rate.

"It gives immense pleasure to say we have rectified the problems we had and it's good to be on the winning side," asserted Dhoni, whose team finished seventh in the previous edition of the IPL, also held in the Emirates.

IANS