Chennai, Oct 3: Languishing at the bottom of the table, defending champions Chennai Super Kings require victory by a big margin to keep their hopes of making the semifinals of the Champions League Twenty20 alive when they take on New South Wales here tomorrow.
Despite being placed at the bottom of Group A, the Super Kings still have a chance to proceed to the next stage as their pool heads into its final round of matches with no team still assured of a semifinal berth.
Topping the group are Mumbai Indians, who have overcome a debilitating injury situation to be at the forefront with five points. However, because of their poor run rate in the series so far, even they are yet to be assured of a place in the last four berth.
Next in the list is the Australian outfit NSW with four points, followed by Cape Cobras with three.
Trinidad and Tobago, who managed to get the better of the Super Kings last night, are in the fourth place with two points.
The Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led CSK, also on two points, bring up the rear by virtue of an inferior net run rate.
Now, a defeat tomorrow to either Cobras or NSW, will ensure Mumbai's progression to the semifinal, while forming a three-way tie among NSW, CSK and T&T—all with four points each—meaning the calculation will come down to run rate.
NSW though could progress to the semifinals as group winners with six points if they manage to win in their crucial match against CSK tomorrow.
It is high time for Chennai to live up to their reputation of being one of the strongest and well-balanced teams in the tournament and convincingly outplay NSW tomorrow to have any chance of defending their title. PTI
