Ruturaj Gaikwad chose to field first after winning the toss. In the 18th over, Chennai easily chased down the goal after KKR could only muster 137/9 on a slow track. Following the game, Aakash Chopra praised CSK’s ability to perform well at home.
At the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), captained by Ruturaj Gaikwad, defeated the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by seven wickets on Monday, April 8, snapping a two-match losing streak.
The Men in Yellow emerged victorious from their home openers against Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Gujarat Titans, but they lost badly away to Sunrisers Hyderabad and Delhi Capitals. But the Super Kings defeated the previous two-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions with their third victory of the season after returning to their home field.
Also read: IPL 2024: Ravindra Jadeja steps in front of MS Dhoni to tease the Chepauk crowd, but he quickly retreats
“The Chepauk Super Kings are the Chennai Super Kings. Champion Super Kings, that is. They are an undefeated team at home. They’ve been unbeatable at home by anybody. Their stronghold has remained impenetrable to all. They have a very powerful stronghold. In a video posted to his YouTube page, Chopra stated, “KKR came prepared, but neither their bowling nor their batting worked for them.
A niggle kept Deepak Chahar out of the game. Meanwhile, Matheesha Pathirana was unable to recover in time for the match against the Knights after being sidelined for the last game against Hyderabad owing to an injury. When facing a strong KKR team, Chopra admitted to being a little worried about CSK’s fast-bowling capabilities.
“Deepak Chahar’s absence surprised me. It was suddenly very poor bowling, I replied, and Pathirana was nowhere to be seen. Undoubtedly, you performed like Lord (Shardul) Thakur, but the opposition was an overwhelming force. Thus, I was a little anxious and worried,” he said.
Everything broke, including the arms, legs, and backbone, according to Ravindra Jadeja: Aakash Chopra
The former cricket player turned broadcaster showered in accolades for Ravindra Jadeja, who ended with numbers of 3/18 in his four overs and was the reason for KKR’s demise. After giving up 56 runs in the powerplay, the hosts lost control of the game as the Saurashtra all-rounder suffocated the opposition hitters through the middle overs.
“Chennai bowled first and won the toss; Phil Salt was out on the very first ball. How will you cook healthy meals without adding salt? Jaddu’s hand made the catch after Tushar Deshpande secured the wicket. It became clear to us that today would be Jaddu’s when the catch ended up in his hand,” he remarked.
“To be fair, Kolkata prevailed on the powerplay. But they were unable to recover when wickets began to fall after that. Ravindra Jadeja took three wickets. In his four overs, he took two catches and didn’t let up a lot of runs either. He fractured every bone in his body, including his arms, legs, and back,” the 46-year-old continued.
With a 3/33 finish, Tushar Deshpande achieved career-best numbers in the IPL. In the meantime, Mustafizur Rahman returned to the top of the Purple Cap standings with a few wickets. Andre Russell was granted a reprieve when MS Dhoni dropped a reasonably simple catch, despite his high standards, which prevented the Bangladeshi pacer from taking a third wicket.
“Shreyas Iyer or Rinku Singh, whoever was attempting to hit, was getting stuck.” Andre Russell also gave it a good swing, but to no avail. At the beginning, Tushar Deshpande took a wicket; towards the conclusion, he returned with more wickets. Had MS Dhoni not dropped a catch, Fizz may have taken three wickets. But there weren’t really many runs,” he clarified.
In the chase, Ruturaj led his team to victory with a patient 67 not out off 58 balls, striking nine fours. On Sunday, April 14, Chennai will now take on the Mumbai Indians at Wankhede Stadium.
Home