M S Dhoni
talisman captain of chennai super kings M S Dhoni An extraordinary script played his part to perfection as they beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 27 runs in the final IPL 2021 on Friday. In a one-sided affair at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Chennai staged a remarkable turnaround to add a fourth trophy to their name, finishing seventh in a nightmare 2020 season.
Experience Faf du Plessis A brilliant 86 off 59 balls with the help of seven fours and three sixes helped CSK reach 3 for 192 when they batted first.
The right-handed opener first put on 61 runs with his opening partner Ruturaj Gaikwad (32) followed by a 63-run stand for the second wicket with Robin Uthappa (31 off 15 balls). all rounder Moeen Ali Then flourished of late playing an unbeaten 37 off 20 balls.
In reply, Kolkata could score 165 for 9 in their 20 overs. Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer scored 51 and 50 respectively.
As Chennai secured their fourth title win, Dhoni refused to retire from the IPL with a cheeky reaction in his post-match presentation. When Harsha Bhogle asked him about the legacy he left behind at CSK, Dhoni said, “Well, I still haven’t left.”
The 40-year-old said of his next, “Well, it’s not about me playing for CSK, it’s about what is best for CSK. The core group has run the team for 10 years. No, us Need to see what’s best.” Plans of the year, moments before the BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah pick up the IPL 2021 trophy.
Dhoni had replied with “definitely not” last year when he was asked if this was his last season with the Chennai-based outfit. He also praised Kolkata and termed them as the worthy team to win the title this year.
“It is very difficult for them to perform well given the position they were in after the first leg. If any team deserves to win the IPL this year, it is KKR the way they have played. I think the break has taken their toll. It helped. Yes we are the most consistent team looking at the numbers but we have lost the final as well. Not letting the opposition in is something that we deliberately want to improve upon.”
“You can’t do well without a good team. We also have great people. I would love to thank the fans. We are in Dubai right now. Even when we played in South Africa, we always had to do well. Got the amount of support. Thanks to all of them. If Chepauk, Chennai feels like it. Hopefully, we’ll be back next year to play for Chennai fans,” Dhoni signed off.
.