Chennai Super Kings win Champions League final

Chennai Super Kings were crowned Twenty20 Champions League winners on Sunday after an eight-wicket victory over Eastern Cape Warriors in Johannesburg.

Indian Premier League champions Chennai outclassed their South African counterparts in all departments and never looked like losing.

Spin bowlers Ravichandran Ashwin and Muttiah Muralitharan took five wickets between them for 32 runs as a disciplined Chennai attack restricted the Warriors to 128 from their 20 overs.

The Warriors made a blistering start to their innings, but when openers Ashwell Prince (6) and captain Davey Jacobs, who made 34 off just 21 balls, were dismissed in the fourth and fifth over respectively, the run rate dwindled.

Without their captain the Warriors could only managed five fours and one six in their 20 overs as they stumbled to 128 on a decent batting wicket.

Chennai’s opening pair of Mike Hussey and Murali Vijay made 103 for the first wicket stand as the Indian side comfortably chased down their target.

South African wicket-keeper Mark Boucher twice missed the opportunity to dismiss Vijay, who ended the tournament as the highest runs scorer with 294 in six games.

Boucher, the most experienced player in the Warrior’s team, missed an edge off the bowling of Rusty Theron when Vijay was on 15 and mishandled a stumping chance with the Indian batsmen on 34.

Vijay went onto make 58 before he was finally caught by Justin Kreusch off the bowling of Nicky Boje in the 15th over.

It was left to captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to hit the winning runs for Chennai with six balls to spare.

Chennai walked away with $2.5million in prize money, while the Warriors had to settle for the $1.3million runners-up prize.

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