Disappointment for the home crowd as they don’t get to watch MS Dhoni bat in what could be his last match at home. Having said that, this win has given CSK a decent chance of making it back to Chennai this year itself as the last two playoffs will be played in Chennai. Gaikwad has played the anchor in the chase, and the three cameos from Ravindra, Mitchell and Dube were enough to see them through. We leave you with a teaser from our match report, and also gratitude for joining us.
Chennai Super Kings signed off at home with a win, also giving themselves a decent chance of coming back home where the last two playoffs will be played. Despite losing their 11th toss out of 13, asked to field in the afternoon heat merely 40 hours after finishing their last match in Ahmedabad, the CSK bowlers used the slow pitch expertly to keep Rajasthan Royals down to 141, a target they chased down with relative ease. The slow pitch was right up the home bowlers’ alley, who kept the powerplay quiet after which Simarjeet Singh kept getting wickets every time RR tried to push back. RR never really succeeded in mounting an attack, something CSK’s New Zealand batters, Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell, successfully did to put their chase on course with a Shivam Dube cameo sealing it. The win took CSK up to 14 points from 13 matches, level with Sunrisers Hyderabad who have a game in hand, but two clear of the nearest challengers outside the top four. RR suffered their third straight defeat, which will be a cause for concern for them going into the playoffs especially with Jos Buttler not expected to be available for the final week.