MS Dhoni rolled back the years and produced a vintage MS Dhoni special, as he knocked off 13 required off the last over against Delhi Capitals and took Chennai Super Kings into their 9th ever IPL final.
Dhoni had the trademark calm, cool and composed look on his face even as the match headed went down to the final over. He had done this many times in the past and Sunday was just another example as to why Dhoni’s form may be temporary, his class will always remain permanent.
However, things in the CSK dugout weren’t that simple. Coach Stephen Fleming informed that prior to MS Dhoni walking out to bat, everyone was in each other’s ears, trying to figure out the best possible way forward with DC tightening the screws on Chennai.
BE7IEVE š#THA7A #DCvCSK #WhistlePodu #Yellove š¦ pic.twitter.com/nU9KzSN9Xc
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) October 11, 2021
When a set Ruturaj Gaikwad was out on the first ball of the penultimate over, Fleming revealed that it was Dhoni himself who took the call to bat ahead of Jadeja.
“There was a lot of chat. We spoke more in those 20 overs than we have for a long time. There was a lot of technical discussions and manoeuvring to try and work out how this was going to unfold. When the captain got looked in his eyes, he said ‘I’ll go’. It’s been well-documented the times that he has done that. Today was one of those. I ain’t holding him back, and we saw the result of that,” Fleming said during the post-match presser.
CSK reach their 9th IPL final
F7em the š#DCvCSK #WhistlePodu #Yellove š¦ pic.twitter.com/XyQmKCee5C
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) October 11, 2021
When MS Dhoni walked out to bat ahead of Jadeja, the move raised a few eyebrows. And rightly so. The CSK skipper had not been in the best of nicks, while Ravindra Jadeja the batsman is in the form of his life. But whenever Dhoni has promoted himself ahead of another left-handed batsman, everyone knows what happens.
CSK sailed past the target set by Delhi Capitals with two balls to spare to reach their 9th IPL final.
