Suresh Raina was brilliant in the CLT20 2014 final: MS Dhoni

Chenai Super Kings (CSK) skipper, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was all praise for Suresh Raina, who came up with a superb knock to help the two-time Indian Premier League (IPL) Champions clinch the Champions League T20 (CLT20) title for the second time.

Put in to bat, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain, led from the front with a fine half-century to power the IPL 2014 champs to a total of 180/6. However, his knock went in vain as Raina smashed an unbeaten 109 off just 62 balls to help Chennai ease to the target with 1.3 overs to spare.

Speaking after the game, Dhoni said Raina came up with a brilliant innings, while he was also pleased with the performance of Pawan Negi, who picked up a five-wicket haul to keep Kolkata to a total below 200.

"I think overall it was a fantastic game for us. To start off, I think it was a good toss to win because of the dew factor. Our fielding was not up to the mark, we didn't start really well, but Raina's batting was fantastic, we needed someone to play really well and stay till the end. He's (Negi) not afraid to toss the ball and I was happy that he was spinning the ball. I felt Gautam batted really well for them."

While Chennai struggled to get into the knock-outs, needing other results to go in their favour, the Dhoni-led side came up with back-to-back clinical performances in the semis and the final to clinch the title in style. While admitting that CSK committed a lot of errors, Dhoni said they came good when it mattered.

"It's important to get into the knockout stage. After that, you may win or lose. We didn't win anything in the last couple of years. We made quite a few errors. Raina got the runs against Punjab in the semi-final but he got out. Today he paced his innings very well which is good to see. Kuldeep was fantastic, it's important that youngsters share the dressing room with legends to get the exposure."

The loss in the final meant that KKR's unbeaten streak, which lasted for 14 games, came to an end. Kolkata captain, Gambhir said he was proud of his team's performance despite the result in the final.

"I think all of us should be proud of each other. This is not the end to be honest, the journey started after those 7 losses in the Indian T20 League. From my side, I can say they can be proud of the performance. There was a bit of dew on the outfield and 170-180 was a decent score on this surface."

Youngster Kuldeep Yadav, who bowled very well, did not have the results to speak for his efforts. Gambhir said the chinaman bowler, who has been selected in the Indian squad, is a quality prospect for the Men in Blue.

"I wish Kuldeep (Yadav) all the best, he's been selected for India, I hope he does very well. Manish (Pandey), Robin (Uthappa), I can take all the names, they've done so well to come here."

Raina was named the Man of the Series for his fine performance in the tournament. Speaking about his knock in this game, the left-hander, who became the first Indian to score a ton in the CLT20, said he went in with a positive attitude in order to ease the pressure off his team-mates.

"Whenever you play a final, I think you need to give your best shot and I think we finished it off before. I knew Kuldeep and Yusuf, I have played them before. So, I was trying to be positive, because if they get a wicket, it could put pressure on the rest of the batsmen. Baz (McCullum) has been amazing on the field, when he comes to bat, he's always positive and the dressing room atmosphere is always good when he's around. Great pitch, we love playing in Bangalore," Raina said.

Negi, who became the first Indian bowler to pick up a fifer in the CLT20, was named the Man of the Match. the youngster, who was pleased with his performance. "I enjoyed bowling out there. There was turn on offer and I was just trying to take pace off the ball. MS (Dhoni) asked me not to experiment too much. It was a big match, it was a final and I was under a bit of pressure as well."