Mumbai: Dhoni has done it again! The former skipper maintained his cool to guide Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to a three-wicket win against Mumbai Indians (MI) in an IPL match here at the DY Patil Sports Academy on Thursday.
With 17 runs needed off the final over, Jaydev Unadkat's yorker trapped Dwaine Pretorius on a review. On the second ball, incoming Dwayne Bravo brought Dhoni back on strike. 16 off 4 became 6 off 2, thanks to a maximum followed by a boundary.
The Indian legend then sprinted for a double and with four needed off the last ball, Dhoni whipped the ball past short fine leg and it cleared the rope for the winning runs.
CSK players roared from the dugout, while a number of MI players came forward to acknowledge and shake hands with Dhoni.
Chasing a tricky target of 156, CSK suffered early blows thanks to Daniel Sams. Ruturaj Gaikwad, who only recently returned to form, was dismissed for a duck, and Mitchell Santner walked back after making 11.
Robin Uthappa (30) and Ambati Rayudu (40) quickly got into the rebuilding act. However, Sams brought MI back into the match with the dismissal of Rayudu in the 15th over.
On a full toss, Rayudu was caught at long-off by Kieron Pollard. With further dents in the middle-order caused by Sams and Riley Meredith, it seemed as if CSK have slipped the match.
Pretorius joined Dhoni and took the pressure off with his quick-fire 14-ball 22, turning the table in favour of CSK.
For MI, who suffered their seventh consecutive defeat in the 2022 season, Sams returned with the figures of 4/30.
Earlier in the day, the lone-warrior Tilak (51 not out) witnessed the fall of wickets at the other end at regular intervals.
CSK made early inroads as Mukesh Choudhary struck thrice to reduce MI to 23/3 in just three overs. Rohit Sharma gave an easy catch at mid-on to return to dugout for a two-ball duck in the very first over.
The MI skipper's opening partner Ishan Kishan's poor tournament with the bat continued as Choudhary rattled his off stump for a golden duck. The left-arm pacer then removed 'Baby AB' Dewald Brevis for four.
There were some misfielding on CSK's part, including a missed stumping opportunity by Dhoni. However, CSK bowlers' brilliance continued to pose trouble for MI batters.
Suryakumar Yadav walked in at No.4 with a lot of responsibility on his shoulders. After smashing three boundaries and one maximum in his 21-ball 32, Santner got rid of Suryakumar as he was taken at deep square leg.
Debutant Hrithik Shokeen (25) chipped in for a while before Bravo showed him the door.
The big-hitter Pollard (14), who recently announced his retirement from international cricket, once again disappointed as he couldn't lift Mumbai Indians.
For CSK, Choudhary was the pick of the bowlers, returning with the figures of 3/19. (UNI)
