MS Dhoni also lauded Ravindra Jadeja's batting and how he won the game for CSK in IPL 2023 final.
Former India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni is known for his composed demeanor, and he rarely lets his emotions get the better of him.
However, in the IPL 2023 final, fans got to see a very different side of the usually calm 'Captain Cool', when he was visibly emotional after Ravindra Jadeja steered CSK to their fifth IPL title against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad.
In the tense 15th and final over of the rain-interrupted IPL 2023 final, CSK found themselves in a precarious position, needing 10 runs from the last two deliveries. And the experienced Jadeja swung the momentum in his team's favor at this critical juncture, hitting Mohit Sharma for a six and a four.
After CSK’s win over GT in the final, Dhoni was seen embracing and lifting Jadeja in celebration of his match-winning performance, and that moment left a lasting impact on the fans.
Reflecting on the incident at a promotional event on Thursday, March 28, Jadeja hilariously said that possibly he is the only one, apart from Dhoni’s wife Sakshi, to have been lifted by MSD himself.
Ravindra Jadeja said: “I believe after Sakshi bhabhi, I am the only guy who was lifted by Mahi bhai.”
Meanwhile, Dhoni also lauded Jadeja for the way he batted and won the game for CSK.
Dhoni said at the event: “And this situation also, you know I was quite confident about you know Jaddu has the talent and mindset to achieve the target. But again, it's not definitely that this is what will happen.”
Dhoni added, “It was a very memorable innings. You know the few sixes that he hit before the last ball. I think those were very difficult. Looking at the TV, it looks easy but now that I bat down the order, I know how difficult it is to get that kind of elevation and hit it for six.”
He signed off by saying, “And at the same time, everybody is under pressure. The opposition wants to win, we want to win. It's hard work for everyone. So glad we were on the winning side. And the emotions were very high. So, a big round of applause for Jaddu for the way he batted.”