29 March PunjabKhabarnama : IPL 2023 saw Chennai Super Kings clinch their record-equalling fifth title as they defeated Gujarat Titans in a rain-drenched final. The win saw CSK equal MI’s record haul of five titles and once again established MS Dhoni’s position as one of the best captains in cricket history.
A knock of 96 runs off 47 balls by Sai Sudharsan saw GT post 214/4 in 20 overs, with even Wriddhiman Saha (54) getting a half-century. It looked like a strong total, but the weather gods had other plans and in the first over of the chase, rain poured down heavily. Then due to the DLS method, CSK were reset a target of 171 runs, which they needed to achieve in 15 overs.
With CSK at 158/5 in 14 overs, they needed 13 runs in the final with Ravindra Jadeja (4) and Shivam Dube (30) batting. In the first four deliveries, the pair managed to take three singles, taking the match down the wire. Needing to defend 10 runs in two balls, Mohit Sharma sent a yorker which Jadeja hammered over long-on for a six, sending CSK fans into a state of frenzy. Then in the final delivery, Mohit sent a low full toss on the pads, which Jadeja glanced to the left of short fine for the match-winning four.
Just as he hit the boundary, the all-rounder ran to skipper MS Dhoni, who lifted him up for his match-winning performance, something which we don’t usually see from the former India captain. During a recent promotional event for CSK, Jadeja made a joke on Dhoni’s celebration. “I believe after Sakshi bhabhi, I am the only guy who was lifted by Mahi bhai,” quipped Jadeja, leaving everyone in splits.
Meanwhile, Dhoni had plenty of praise for his teammate. He said, “And this situation also, you know I was quite confident about you know Jaddu has the talent and mindset to achieve the target. But again, it’s not definitely that this is what will happen. It was a very memorable innings. You know the few sixes that he hit before the last ball. I think those were very difficult.”
“Looking at the TV, it looks easy but now that I bat down the order, I know how difficult it is to get that kind of elevation and win it for six. And at the same time, everybody is under pressure. The opposition wants to win, we want to win. It’s hard work for everyone. So glad we were on the winning side. And the emotions were very high. So a big round of applause for Jaddu for the way he batted,” he added.
In what was a shock to fans on the eve of the IPL 2024 opener between CSK and RCB, Dhoni handed away the captaincy to young opener Ruturaj Gaikwad. Under Gaikwad’s leadership, CSK have had a strong start and are in pole position with two wins in two games.