CSK have been very consistent, but we need to win trophies: Faf du Plessis

In an attacking batting unit such as the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Faf du Plessis is its anchor. Calmness personified, du Plessis has averted major mishaps with his solid presence at one end. The semi final against Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) was once such occasion which demanded du Plessis to be at his best. Chennai were up against it having lost Dwayne Smith, Brendon McCullum and Suresh Raina with just 41 runs on the board.

The team needed a sensible head, and who better than du Plessis? The South African middle-order batsman made a composed 46 and was involved in a 65-run stand for the fourth wicket with Dwayne Bravo as MS Dhoni's men recovered from the poor start.

Speaking to CLT20.com after the match, du Plessis said his team managed to handle the pressure well after the loss of key early wickets. "We played a really good game of cricket tonight," he said. "There were two occasions where we were under pressure tonight with the bat. We were 41 for 3 and then 141 for 6, that too in a big game, that can always swing either way. We handled the pressure really well with the partnership between me and Dwayne Bravo, and in the end Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) got us to a very good score," he added.

du Plessis said the key to their success was their running between the wickets and the ability to stitch together an useful partnership. "We wanted to get a partnership and it was important to knock the ball around for two or three overs. We had to make sure we gave ourselves an opportunity to get that partnership going. I thought we did really well to hit the gaps in the field, not necessarily taking the guys in the fence on. It was about taking calculated risks," he said.

Dwelling on his batting, du Plessis said he took the attack back to the Punjab bowlers at the start of his innings before going back to anchoring. Having played at many positions, he said it wasn't tough to change gears. "With Dwayne Smith, Brendon McCullum and Suresh Raina at the top, it is all power and all guns blazing. It was important for someone to strike a balance between all that fire-power," he said. "I am used to opening the batting in T20 cricket and tonight I got an opportunity to go in the fifth over and counter-attack and play a bit aggressively. When the field went back, I saw myself looking into my role back at number four. It was then about hitting the spaces and running well between the wickets," he further noted.

du Plessis has been in sublime touch in recent times. On the tour of Zimbabwe, he made most of the opportunity to bat at number three and notched up three hundreds. He has missed a few matches for Chennai with injuries, but said he was feeling good about his present batting form. "I have only played two games and I have been injured for the rest, I have been hitting the ball really well. The last two months have been great for me and I have been in great form coming from the Zimbabwean series. It is important that when you are in good form you get some good runs for the team," du Plessis noted.

Chennai Super Kings have been one of the most consistent Indian Premier League (IPL) sides over the years and du Plessis is hoping that they break the recent barren run of trophies with a victory in the final. "We are very driven to win this tournament. Chennai Super Kings have always been consistent but we want to win trophies. It really means a lot for us and we especially want to win this one because its been quite some time since we last won a trophy. We are done with one step but we have another big game coming up against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) who are a very good team. We are very pumped up. We don't want to get to another final and lose. We want to get the silverware," he signed off.