Mayers 50 in vain as Super Giants go down

CHENNAI, India (CMC):

West Indies all-rounder Kyle Mayers belted his second successive half-century of the new Indian Premier League season, but Lucknow Super Giants still came up short in a 12-run loss to Chennai Super Kings.

Asked to chase an imposing 218 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium here yesterday, Super Giants got a top score of 53 from opener Mayers and a blistering 32 from former West Indies Twenty20 skipper Nicholas Pooran, but the 28 runs required from the final over proved too tall an order.

The defeat for Super Giants was their first following their opening win on Saturday while CSK’s victory was also their first.

Sent in, CSK were propelled by openers Ruturaj Gaikwad (57) and Devon Conway (47), the pair laying a sound platform with a 110-run stand.

While Gaikwad faced 31 balls and counted three fours and four sixes, Conway lashed five fours and a brace of sixes in a 29-ball innings.

When both fell within eight balls of each other, Shivan Dube (27) and England’s Moeen Ali (19) put on a further 32 for the third wicket to sustain the momentum.

Mayers, fresh from West Indies’ T20 conquest in South Africa, once again handed Super Giants a flying start, the left-hander blasting eight fours and a couple of sixes in a 22-ball cameo.

Coming off his 73 in Saturday’s opener, Mayers raced to his 50 off 21 balls at the start of the sixth over courtesy of four overthrows but was dismissed a couple balls later, caught at deep mid-wicket off off-spinner Moeen, who clinched Man-of-the-Match honours with four for 26.

Moeen then ripped through the innings to leave it tottering on 130 for five in the 14th over before the left-handed Pooran struck two fours and three sixes in a 26-run, sixth-wicket stand with Ayush Badoni (23) to steady the chase.

Pooran found Ben Stokes on the ropes at long off from seamer Tushar Deshpande’s (2-45) bowling at the end of the 16th over and Badoni’s last ditch 39-run, seventh-wicket partnership with Krishnappa Gowtham (17 not out) proved in vain.