MS Dhoni was an elated captain as Chennai Super Kings (CSK) defeated Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by two wickets in a high-scoring thriller in Abu Dhabi on Sunday (September 26).
Chasing 172 to win, CSK were 146/6 after 18 overs and it was then Ravindra Jadeja smashed Prasidh Krishna for 22 runs in the penultimate over to take the team closer to victory.
With only four runs to defend in the final over, KKR spinner Sunil Narine added more twists in the tale by dismissing Sam Curran and Jadeja but CSK eventually got over the line on the final delivery as Deepak Chahar played a winning shot.
“It’s a nice victory to have. At times you play good cricket and you lose. It is enjoyable when you don't do so well and still win. It was good cricket from both sides, and a pleasure for the spectators. We bowled well in patches. It’s not easy for the fast bowlers. We tried to give them short spells. 170 was a par score, I felt,” Dhoni said while speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony.
“When Jadeja was bowling, it was coming on and not stopping. The way we started, KKR deserve some applause for making a game out of it. We were also worried about how the wicket will be. When you keep playing on a wicket, groundsmen sometimes water it more and leave some more grass. The important thing was to make the most of what we had learnt and to come back stronger,” he added.
With this victory, Chennai Super Kings overtook Delhi Capitals to reclaim the top position on the points table. While the Dhoni-led side has the same number of wins as DC i.e. 8 from 10 games, they have a net run rate of +1.069, which is the best among all 8 sides.
CSK will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their next match in Sharjah on Thursday (September 30).
