MI vs CSK Review – Local lad Rahane steers Chennai’s chase
Chennai Super Kings registered their second consecutive win in IPL 2023 with a thumping seven-wicket triumph over arch-rivals Mumbai Indians in the 12th match on April 8, Saturday. Mumbai Indians’ top-order struggled again as the team posted just 157/8 while batting first with Ishan Kishan top-scoring with 32 off 21. Ravindra Jadeja took three wickets while Mitchell Santner and Tushar Deshpande picked two for Chennai. While chasing, Ajinkya Rahane smashed his fastest IPL fifty to help Chennai chase the target in just 18.1 overs.
MS Dhoni won the toss for Chennai and elected to field at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. Rahane, Dwaine Pretorius, and Sisanda Magala and Tushar Deshpande came in for Ben Stokes, Rajvardhan Hangagekar, Moeen Ali and Ambati Rayudu while Mumbai Indians replaced Jofra Archer with Tristan Stubbs. Rayudu eventually scored the winning runs for CSK after replacing Deshpande as the impact player.
Mumbai Indians started well with Ishan and Rohit Sharma adding a quick 38-run stand for the first wicket. Tushar Deshpande bowled out Rohit in the fourth over to give Chennai a breakthrough and Mumbai never recovered throughout their innings.
Jadeja and Santner dominated in the middle overs as Mumbai Indians’ batters seemed clueless against the fierce spin attack. But Tim David added 31 off 22 and spin all-rounder Hrithik Shokeen scored an unbeaten 18 runs to help Mumbai reach a fighting total at the end.
Chennai lost their star opener Devon Conway on the innings’ fourth delivery but quickly recovered to avoid an early fall off. Rahane shocked his former team by smashing a sensational knock to kill the game for Mumbai. He recorded a 19-ball fifty, joint second-fastest by CSK batter as Chennai scored 68 runs in the powerplay overs.
Rahane scored 61 off just 27 before getting caught out on Piyush Chawla’s delivery in the eighth over. But Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shivam Dube kept the momentum going by adding a 43-run stand for the third wicket. Dube scored 28 off 26 while Gaikwad stayed unbeaten at 40* off 36 to record an easy win.
Top Performers from the match
Ajinkya Rahane
The 34-year-old enjoyed his debut game for CSK and he surely will remember the game for lifetime as he smashed his fastest IPL fifty in just 19 balls. Rahane scored 61 off 27 with seven fours and three sixes to register his 30th IPL fifty and also potentially secured a place in Chennai’s next games in the tournament.
Ravindra Jadeja
The star spin all-rounder was excellent, picking up three wickets while conceding just 20 runs in his four-over spell. He took valuable wickets of Ishan Kishan and Tilak Verma and also dismissed Cameron Green with a stunning catch off his own delivery.
What’s next for both teams?
Chennai Super Kings next face Rajasthan Royals at MA Chidambaram Stadium on April 12 while Mumbai Indians travel to Delhi to clash against another struggling side- the Delhi Capitals- on April 11
