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Chennai seal IPL title with final-ball thriller

cricket29 May 2023 20:44| © MWP
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The Chennai Super Kings were crowned Tata Indian Premier League (IPL) champions for a record-equalling fifth time after a dramatic last-ball victory over defending champions the Gujarat Titans in a match that ended at 1:35am in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.

Ravindra Jadeja was the hero for the visitors, striking the last two deliveries for a six and then a four to clinch the win by five wickets on the DLS method.

All this after nearly three hours were lost late on Monday evening due to rain, effectively taking the match into a third day at the Narendra Modi Stadium where the initial target of 215 was revised and reduced to 171 in 15 overs for Chennai.

Despite the elements, most of the estimated 100 000 fans in attendance remained on the edge of their seats right till the end to witness an epic win for the men in yellow, captained by the legendary former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Although the veteran skipper was out for a duck, he still went on to claim a fifth crown to go with his five runners-up medals, but the 2023 finale will be remembered for many more reasons, not least the weather which forced the initial final to be postponed by 24 hours and pushed into the reserve day on account of heavy rains in the area.

The Titans then looked favourites for most of the game after Sai Sudharsan led an incredible exhibition of batting with a sublime 47-ball 96 that powered them to a mammoth 214 for four – the highest ever score in a final.

The 21-year-old plundered six sixes and eight fours in his outstanding showing, which was supported superbly by Wriddhiman Saha, who made 54 off 39 balls (5 fours, 1 six), as well as Shubman Gill (39) and Hardik Pandya (21*) after the home side were asked to bat first.

Indian superstar Gill, dropped twice early by Deepak Chahar, provided the hosts with a fine start alongside Saha, but fell after crunching seven fours in his 20 deliveries, stumped by Dhoni off Jadeja (1-38) to claim his 300th T20 dismissal behind the stumps and 250th in the IPL.

Gill, meanwhile, became the second highest run-scorer in a single IPL season by ending on 890 runs.

At the other end, Saha found company in Sudharsan with the pair beginning slowly, before finding gear during a second-wicket partnership that yielded 64.

Saha finally fell to Chahar (1-38), before captain Pandya and Sudharsan set alight the fireworks during an even more fiery stand that followed.

The two put on 81 in a little over five overs with even the previously miserly Matheesha Pathirana (2-44) not spared.

The Sri Lankan did manage two late wickets, but it came at a heavy cost with the 2022 winners looking on course to defend their title at the halfway mark.

Rain then threatened to play spoil-sport again, before it cleared sufficiently to allow for the players to return.

Devon Conway (47 off 25 balls) top-scored at the start of the reply and put on 74 for the first wicket alongside Ruturaj Gaikwad (26), lifting Chennai off to a flying start.

But 18-year-old Afghan, Noor Ahmad, applied the brakes with a spell of 2-17 in three overs to tilt the match back in the Titans’ favour.

However, Ajinkya Rahane (27 off 13 balls), Ambati Rayudu (19 off 8 balls) in his final IPL game and Dube (32*) kept their side in the hunt despite another excellent bowling performance by Mohit Sharma (3-36).

But the latter erred slightly with the crucial final two deliveries and that proved decisive as Chennai were crowned champions of IPL 2023.

 

 

GUJARAT TITANS: Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wkt), Sai Sudharsan, Hardik Pandya (capt), Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Rashid Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Noor Ahmed, Mohit Sharma, Mohammed Shami.

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Ajinkya Rahane, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (capt, wkt), Deepak Chahar, Tushar Deshpande, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana.

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