Badrinath stars for Chennai

Mumbai - Australia pace bowler Doug Bollinger bagged 3-21 and Subramaniam Badrinath slammed an unbeaten 63 as defending champion Chennai Super Kings defeated Pune Warriors by eight wickets in the IPL on Wednesday.

Bollinger came up with timely strikes to restrict Pune to 141-6 after the home side elected to bat. Badrinath then produced a neat 44-ball knock as Chennai scored 145-2 with three balls left.

For the losing team, captain Yuvraj Singh was the highest scorer with 62 not out.

Chennai improved to a provisional second in the 10-team standings after the return match, having prevailed over Pune by 25 runs on Monday. New franchise Pune remained eighth on four points having played one game less.

Pune was denied a big score by Bollinger, who bagged three important wickets.

The left-armer removed openers Jesse Ryder of New Zealand and Mohnish Mishra in the space of three deliveries and then came back to dismiss compatriot Mitchell Marsh in the death overs.

Ryder looked threatening, once hitting three consecutive fours off Sri Lanka new-ball bowler Nuwan Kulasekara, but went for a pull shot and was caught at mid-wicket for 19.

Yuvraj remained unbeaten on 62 off 43 deliveries with four sixes and three fours, impressing in the way he knocked boundaries off low full tosses.

He dispatched New Zealand pace bowler Tim Southee for two sixes in the last over to cap the innings in style but it did not prove to be good enough.

"We are not applying our minds while batting and that is why we are losing," Yuvraj said. "We lost too many wickets at the start."

In reply, Chennai lost Australia opener Mike Hussey for only nine, but Badrinath partnered in a 61-run second-wicket stand with opener Murali Vijay (31).

The pair started cautiously before dominating the spin attack led by left-armer Murali Kartik.

Badrinath slowly took control, unleashing two sixes and six fours and seeing the team through in the company of Suresh Raina (34), with whom he added 65 in the unbroken third-wicket partnership.