On one hand it was a great feeling seeing Deccan Chargers back to their winning ways by trouncing Mumbai Indians by 19 runs. A stupendous bowling effort by Rohit Sharma who took 4 wickets for 6 runs which included a hat trick was the main reason for the DC win.
And on the other hand, heartbreak to see Chelsea miss yet another seat to the Champions league finals. Andreas Iniesta’s injury time goal meant that Barcelona drew 1-1 with Chelsea and thus moved into the finals with a better away goal record.
Earlier, Michael Essien scored for Chelsea in the 9th minute to go 1-0 for the English team.
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Its 2 defeats in a row for Deccan Chargers now. The match agains the Rajasthan Royals went to the wire as they beat DC by 3 wickets with just 2 balls to spare. Set to bat first, the DC batting floundered on a nice batting track to end up at 141. Suman and Rohit Sharma top scored with 41 and 38 respectively. They were ably supported by Gilchrist who scored 39.
Rajasthan were in dire straits at 3/3. But recovered nicely to win the thriller in the last over. A few dropped catches and missed run outs proved costly for DC.
With Delhi also losing to Chennai, the position at the top stays unchanged with both Deccan Chargers and Delhi Daredevils being joint leaders.
Above pictures courtesy: Cricinfo
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After reading the latest post by the Fakeipl player, Iam having a suspiction that the blogger could be none other than Saurav Ganguly himself. A few reasons why i feel the same.
1. He says at the end that he is retiring from all forms of cricket after IPL. He is retired from one dayers and tests and after this year’s humiliation, it seems Saurav has had enough of cricket.
2. At one point of time in the blog he said that he will blog thru his brother as laptops are being banned in hotels and other places. Saurav has a brother Snehashish, a former cricketer i believe. Saurav could have been referring to him.
3. The blog only referred to Saurav as Lordie. Other than sulking, it never had any bad remarks against him. The only two things written consistently about Saurav was that he was aloof or sulking. This could have been to ensure that no one could suspect him. He gave himself a reasonably good nickname. Everyone knows Saurav is known as Maharajah. Almighty Lord suits fine.
4. Also the blogger has declared that he will disclose his identity after the last match. No cricketer worth his salt will take this risk. Only Ganguly has nothing to lose. He has enough anger against Shah Rukh Khan for all the humiliation meted to him, and its pretty evident in all his posts. Even in the most current post.
5. There are rumors that Kolkata Knight Riders have dropped Kolkata from their name. Their spat with the administrators of the Eden Gardens cricket stadium in Kolkata is also well known. At one point, there were rumors that KKR would shift to Cuttak in Orissa and base there. If that happens, Ganguly will not be a part of their plans anymore. Not that he is, now.
I could be wrong. The last day of the IPL could really throw up a surprise. It could be SRK himself looking for his 2 cents of publicity. Meanwhile, we have another reason to see the end of IPL this year 
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The high flying Deccan Chargers were bought down to the ground by a determined Delhi Daredevils. Batting first, DC put up 148 on the board which was never going to be enough for the strong batting line up of the Daredevils. A late flurry of boundaries by Dwayne Smith who hit 48 off just 28 balls with five fours and two sixes took them to a respectable total when they were at one point, tottering at 54/3 at the end of the 10th over.
Despite a few hiccups, Tilakaratne Dilshan made a sedate 52 as he guided his team for a victory over DC. With this, both Delhi Daredevils and Deccan Chargers stay join leaders on the top of the table with DC slightly ahead with a better run rate.
The Chargers next take on the Rajasthan Royals on Saturday at 1600 hrs IST as they try to maintain their hold on the top of the league table.
Above pictures courtesy: Cricinfo
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The mouthwatering contest between the Chennai Super Kings and Deccan Chargers went into the final over as DC beat CSK by 6 wickets in their 4th match. Thus establishing their firm control at the top of the table and keeping a clean slate.
Above picture courtesy: Cricinfo
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Deccan Chargers brought the high flying Mumbai Indians led by the mighty Sachin Tendulkar down to the ground. Chasing 169 for a victory, the Mumbai Indians were racing away to a victory at 85/1 in just 10 overs when the dreaded tactical time out did the trick.
Pragyan Ojha who bowled an awesome 4 over spell taking 3 wickets for just 21 runs put brakes in the Mumbai batting. Fidel Edwards and RP Singh chipped in with 2 wickets apiece.
Earlier, batting first, the Deccan Chargers got off to a flier with Gibbs topscoring with 58 and ably supported by Gilchrist (35) and Dwayne Smith (35). A lower order collapse restricted Deccan Chargers to just 168 when at a point 200 was surely on the cards.
With this victory, Deccan Chargers are clearly on the top with a 100% record. 3 wins in 3 matches. DC next take on the mighty Chennai Super Kings on monday at 1600 hrs IST. That should be another mouthwatering contest.
Above pictures courtesy: Cricinfo
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Adam Gilchrist, the captain of Deccan Chargers did what he does best. Blast his way out of the park. A 45 balls 71 along with Rohit Sharma’s 52 off 30 balls made sure that the Deccan Chargers beat the Bangalore Royal Challengers by 24 runs.
The pick among the bowlers again was Scott Styris with 3/32 and RP Singh with 2/17. Last year’s wooden spoon winners, the Deccan Chargers now top the tables with a 100% record (2 victories in 2 matches).
The Chargers take on the Mumbai Indians led by Sachin Tendulkar next, on Saturday (25th April). That one should be a cracker.
Above pictures courtesy: Cricinfo
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RP Singh took 4 for 22 and a fiery spell from Fiedel Edwards who conceeded just 6 runs in 4 overs with one maiden made sure that the Deccan Chargers won their inagural match against the Kolkata Knight Riders by 8 wickets.
Gibbs top scored with 43 and Rohit Sharma contributed 36 as the Chargers won comfortably with more than 6 overs to spare. KKR were all out for 101 in 19.4 overs.
Above picture courtesy: Cricinfo
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