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Follow UsThe Gaikwad-Dube stand
The third-wicket stand between Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shivam Dube was the backbone of Chennai Super Kings’ innings. They smashed 90 runs in 45 deliveries, lifting CSK from 60/2 in 7.5 overs to 150/3 in the 16th over. Gaikwad scored 69 off 40 balls while Dube finished unbeaten on 66 from 38 deliveries. They paved the way for CSK to mount a 200-plus total.
Dhoni’s belligerent finish
If Gaikwad and Dube laid the platform, MS Dhoni’s belligerent finish took them to 206. Dhoni stepped in with only four balls left and made full use of them, smashing his first three balls for sixes and scoring 20 not out from four balls.
Coincidentally, CSK won by 20 runs. Thala for a reason? It's amazing how things work out.
The middle-overs contrast
Mumbai Indians had a rollicking start in the hunt for 207. They were on track but CSK pulled the game back in the middle overs, conceding only 69 runs. Meanwhile, Chennai scored 101 runs in this phase.
Rohit’s hundred in a losing cause
Rohit Sharma batted through the innings to notch up his second IPL hundred. While he scored 103 off 63 balls, the remaining batters contributed only 74 off 57.
Rohit himself couldn’t accelerate as he would have liked to. Chennai bowlers kept bowling away from his reach and the former Mumbai skipper managed a strike rate of only 106.7 in the wide line zone.
Pathirana trumps all
Matheesha Pathirana was the difference between the two sides. In his spell of 4/28, he picked the vital wickets of Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and Romario Shepherd.
The seamer fetched wickets off the shorter side of the pitch and timed his yorkers well. MI got Malinga-ed at their home venue, where Lasith Malinga, now MI’s bowling coach, created his IPL legacy.
