JAIPUR — Rajasthan Royals entered the final of the Champions League T20 (CLT20) 2013 after beating the Chennai Super Kings by 14 runs in the first semifinal at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium here Friday. After all the big guns fell silent for Chennai and the game seemed gone for Super Kings, Ravichandran Ashwin revived the innings with a stunning 28-ball 46 to take CSK close to a victory. Dhoni, who was leading a T20 side for the 100th time in India, won the toss and elected to field. Dravid too admitted that he would've opted to field had he won the toss. In a bid to chase 160, Chennai got off to a hesitant start. The running between the wickets was especially poor. While Murali Vijay ran out Michael Hussey, a direct hit by Sanju Samson from extra cover found Vijay short of the crease. By the end of the powerplay overs, Chennai was 41 for two. Dravid, too used bizarre tactics to outfox MS Dhoni and his men as he introduced six bowlers in the first seven overs. From thereon, Rajasthan bowlers dominated the proceedings as Chennai batsmen looked scratchy were reeling at 61 for five. Raina hung around for a while looking good even as wickets continued to tumble at the other end. He scored four boundaries in his knock of 29 runs before getting dismissed by Pravin Tambe. Tambe finished with figures of three for 10 from his four overs. Ravichandran Ashwin, in company of Morris helped Chennai go past the 100-run mark. Earlier, a brilliant 56-ball 70 by Ajinkya Rahane had taken the home side to 159 for eight. He laced his innings with six boundaries and two sixes. Dravid's innings didn't last long as his defense was beaten by a Chris Morris yorker after he had shown vintage class with a square drive that resulted in a boundary. Rajasthan's win also provides cricket fans another chance to watch Dravid in action. If MumbaiIndians win the second semi-final, it could well be an opportunity to have Sachin Tendulkar and Dravid for the final time on the field together. Brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 159 for 8 in 20 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 70, Shane Watson 32; Dwayne Bravo 3 for 26) beat Chennai Super Kings 145 for 8 in 20 overs (Ravichandran Ashwin 46, Suresh Raina 29; Pravin Tambe 3 for 10) by 14 runs. — Agencies
