As the match between the Kings XI Punjab and the Chennai SuperKings got underway, all eyes must have been on Dhoni. The highest paid cricketer in the tournament was definitely nervous when he came out to bat, and was dismissed in just 3 balls. But not to worry, because Mike Hussey thouroughly murdered the Kings XI with the fastest-yet 100 in Twenty20 tournament. But what did the Kings XI Punjab was the absolutely thorough approach of the Super Kings. Everyone on the team supported Hussey very well, with lots of folks scoring fast 30s and 20s. The SuperKings raced away to a unbelievably high total of 240 runs! I mean, these folks are scoring ODI-style runs in twnety overs!

The fielding of the Kings XI Punjab was, on  the other hand, very sloppy. Sreeshanth dropped Hussey once and then Yuvraj again dropped him again a few overs later. Hussey, undeterred, continued to smash the sixes. You know your fielding is pretty bad when the spectators take more catches than you do.

The batting of the Kings XI Punjab did put up a good show, though. Hopes scored a really fast 73 and all the other batsman also chipped in with very useful 20s and 30s, but in the end the 240 was just too much. Despite the win, the fielding of the SuperKings was rather worrying.  Murali dropped a simple catch and then later on floored a half-chance. Dhoni even missed a straightforward stumping. Another thing that I didn’t get is why Parthiv Patel was playing, if Dhoni was keeping wickets.

Anyhow, it was a good game, with the Kings XI putting up a spirited performance, but I think the level of cricket, especially in the bowling and fielding departments needs to move up a notch.