Sam Curran's promotion to opener impresses Chennai fans, Shane Watson trolled online

Chennai are currently competing with Hyderabad in Match 29 of the Dream11 IPL 2020 at the Dubai International Cricket Ground in Dubai. Having won the toss, MS Dhoni elected to bat first. Notably, this is the first time that the Men in Yellow have gotten the opportunity to bat first in the tournament so far.

ALSO READ | Dream11 IPL 2020 Match 29 Hyderabad vs Chennai live pitch report and weather forecast for Dubai

Dream11 IPL 2020: Netizens laud Chennai's move to open with Sam Curran, troll Shane Watson

As soon as the Chennai openers came out on the field though, everyone was shocked when Faf du Plessis was accompanied by all-rounder Sam Curran on the field in place of Shane Watson. This is the first time that Shane Watson hasn't opened the batting for Chennai in the Dream11 IPL. The reason behind Sam Curran's promotion could be the failure of Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis at providing blistering starts.

Chennai is currently at the penultimate position on the Dream11 IPL 2020 points table with two wins and five losses. With the business end of the tournament quickly approaching, the Chennai think tank sprung a surprise by promoting Sam Curran up the order. The move paid off for Chennai as Sam Curran scored 31 runs off 21 with three fours and two sixes. The 22-year old fetched 21 runs off the fourth over bowled by Khaleel Ahmed where he smashed two boundaries and as many maximums. However, the southpaw was cleaned up by Sandeep Sharma in the next over, bringing an end to a quickfire cameo.

ALSO READ | MS Dhoni, Chennai-themed house by Tamil Nadu family leaves fans stunned on social media

Netizens went berserk after watching Sam Curran open the batting for Chennai. Several reactions poured in on Twitter where fans expressed their delight at watching the Englishman open the innings. While some fans were happy with Sam Curran opening for Chennai, others trolled Shane Watson for his inconsistent performances. Let's take a look at a few reactions.

This is not the first time that Sam Curran has opened the innings in the Dream11 IPL. The southpaw has done so once in the past when he was playing for Punjab in the last edition of the cash-rich league. Sam Curran had scored 20 off 10 balls then with three fours and one six before Sandeep Lamichhane claimed his wicket.

ALSO READ | Hyderabad vs Chennai live: MS Dhoni has THIS inspiration to look upto for winning crunch Hyderabad match

The Sam Curran Dream11 IPL stats have been extremely impressive this season. In eight matches this year, Sam Curran has played some quickfire cameos and justified his position in the team by fulfilling his role to perfection. Curran has scored his runs at a blistering strike-rate of 181.30. The Sam Curran Dream11 IPL stats for 2020 also include the 8 wickets he has picked in as many games.

The Hyderabad vs Chennai live match is a crucial fixture for both sides as they are coming on the back of defeats in their last games. Meanwhile, at the time of publishing this article, Chennai scored 92/2 at the end of 13 overs. Shane Watson and Ambati Rayudu are going strong for the three-time Dream11 IPL champions. MS Dhoni's men will look to post a competitive total in the Hyderabad vs Chennai live match to give their bowlers something to defend. 

ALSO READ | Virender Sehwag trolls Kolkata for dropping Sunil Narine, has crucial advice for MS Dhoni

SOURCE: IPL TWITTER