CSK DC: CSK into the finale downs DC in.

CSK DC, IPL 2021, Playoffs: A suspenseful qualifier one between DC and CSK saw vintage MS Dhoni back to form. CSK came to play with a solid mindset and heaps of experience of the playoffs in their pocket.

Batting first DC made a great start to their innings, Prithvi Shaw(60) surviving on a lucky side but manages to make most of it. Losing his partner early, innings kept running with his effort.

Going for almost 16 runs at the start, Josh Hazlewood recuperated with two wickets in the form of Shikhar Dhawan and Shreyas Iyer. He made the momentum shift towards the Whistle Podu army.

Right when it appeared that DC will struggle to achieve a big score, Rishabh Pant and Shimron Hetmyer got along well in the middle. Their destructive style sliced through the CSK armor to gain a score of 172 runs.

Bravo, Ali, and Jadeja were crucial for Dhoni’s middle-over campaign as they resisted DC’s surge quite a bit. They all took a wicket each, assuring wickets recurrently.

With a target of 174 to chase, CSK lost Faf right at the start. Anrich Nortje’s terror seems to paralyzed Faf as he just stood there lacking foot movement.

The next wicket would fall in the 14th over after a brilliant partnership between Ruturaj Gaikwad(70) and Robin Uthappa(63). The veteran was the first to attack and he did it with grace. Robin’s career should have been more rich and profound looking at his talent but nevertheless, he was great.

On the other end, the Newborn career of Ruturaj Gaikwad learning a lot under the treasures of veterans was phenomenal. His international journey is craving to take him with it.

It looked like the last ball six from Srikar Bharat is still haunting Avesh Khan as he appeared to lack confidence. CSK demolished him gathering 47 runs from his spell.

Still in the game, DC never doubted themselves and played fantastic cricket. They stretch the game to the last over where they had to defend 13 runs. A slight misjudgment from the DC skipper giving Tom Curran the last over instead of Kagiso Rabada.

MS Dhoni who hadn’t lived enough at the crease throughout the tournament was looking rusty again. However, a six-over mid-wicket got him going and finished the game with a six and a boundary in two consecutive delivery.

With this win, CSK qualifies for their 9th finale while Thala Dhoni is in his 10th finals. They are not quite efficient in the finals but they will hope to change it this time around.

Watch the IPL 2021, Qualifier 1, CSK DC highlights.

CSK DC: post match presentation.

Rishabh Pant:

“It’s very disappointing and hard to describe how we are feeling and all we can do is rectify our mistakes. Bowlers were bowling well throughout, especially Tom Curra, that was the reason he was given the responsibility to bowl the final over. We set a decent target on the scoreboard but Chennai’s openers got off to a flier and that suddenly made all the difference. We will learn from our mistakes and hopefully fo on to win the next match to meet Chennai again in the finals.”

Robin Uthappa:

“I am feeling very grateful and happy to contribute. It’s my son’s fourth birthday and this knock is for him. We knew we needed a good start and I just played on merit. There is nothing to worry about my injury, it’s probably just a niggle and should be fine before the finals. I just tried to focus on my routines and am very grateful that I could contribute tonight. This franchise is the most secure group and after my time under Gambhir at Kolkata, this is the most comfortable I have felt mentally.”

MS Dhoni:

“It was a crucial knock(his own knock), I felt it would be tough and wanted the batter to bat deep. As far as my knock is concerned, it was all about watching the ball and hitting the ball. I have not done enough this season so it was good to get that out of the system. We have the side that hasn’t done that often. (changing batting positions) We even have Chahar who can also contribute with the bat. A proper batsman will think twice before hitting the big shots and batters like Thakur or Chahar can give you 1-2 boundaries and that helped the cause. (Robin Uthappa) He likes to bat top of the order and Moeen has also done well there, so we have left it on the God who will bat there in this match. The chat with Gaikwad is simple. He has improved and he is someone who wants to bat 20 overs. He is very eager to learn and somebody who plays authentic shots. It was tough to bounce back from the last season, the emotions were very high and those 3-4 games in 2020, we wanted to do well.”