Match overview
Chennai Super Kings beat Punjab Kings by 28 runs at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on 5 May 2024. CSK batted first after Punjab won the toss and chose to field, posting 167/9 across their 20 overs. Punjab's chase never gained traction; they lost 6 wickets in the middle overs and finished on 139/9. Ravindra Jadeja was named Player of the Match for his allround contribution. The win gave CSK a result they badly needed, having lost three of their previous five IPL 2024 fixtures.
The innings phases told a clear story. CSK's powerplay produced 60 runs for 1 wicket, comfortably above this venue's powerplay average of 42 runs. The middle phase added 57 more, and a late flourish of 50 from the death overs brought the total to 167. For Punjab, the middle phase was catastrophic: 44 runs for 6 wickets between overs 7 and 15 ended the contest as a meaningful contest. Their death-overs phase produced a respectable 48, but the target was already beyond them by that point.
Venue and conditions
Dharamsala is one of the more distinctive venues in the IPL. Set at altitude against a Himalayan backdrop, the ground has hosted 35 T20 matches with an average first-innings score of 195 and an average second-innings score of 186. Both figures are relatively high, which makes CSK's 167 a sub-par first-innings total by this venue's standards. The fact that Punjab still fell 28 runs short reflects how badly their middle-order batting malfunctioned.
Toss data at this venue is pronounced: teams have elected to field in 77% of matches here. The logic involves a surface that tends to assist spinners as the innings progresses, making batting second theoretically harder in the later overs. The chase success rate of 51% is almost exactly even, so the toss bias hasn't translated into a reliable winning formula for chasing teams. CSK's powerplay execution, reaching 60/1 against a backdrop of an average powerplay of 42, suggests the pitch was true early and deteriorated, which suits the pattern spinners like Jadeja exploit.
How to watch
IPL 2024 fixtures are broadcast in the UK on Sky Sports Cricket. Matches are available to stream live via Sky Go or NOW TV with a relevant subscription. Given the time difference between India and the UK, most evening matches in India begin between 14:30 and 15:30 UK time, with afternoon fixtures starting around 10:00 UK time. Sky Sports typically provides pre-match and post-match studio coverage for the bigger fixtures in the competition.
Recent form
CSK arrived in Dharamsala having won 2 and lost 3 of their previous 5 IPL 2024 matches. Wins against Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad had been offset by back-to-back losses to Lucknow Super Giants and an earlier defeat to Punjab Kings. The pressure was building on a side accustomed to finishing in the top four.
Punjab Kings, by contrast, came in on a two-match winning run having beaten Kolkata Knight Riders and CSK before this fixture. Before that they had lost to Gujarat Titans, Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals in succession. Their form across five games read as W-W-L-L-L from most recent backwards, and despite the winning streak they remained inconsistent. This defeat extended Punjab's struggles in the away leg of the season, and with the head-to-head now at 16 wins apiece from 33 meetings, CSK will view the result as a creditable performance in a ground that rarely flatters the side batting first.
