Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Thursday (September 30) became the first team to qualify for the playoffs in the ongoing season of Indian Premier League (IPL 2021). CSK beat Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by six wickets to record their ninth win in the tournament.

CSK captain MS Dhoni won the toss and elected to bowl first in Sharjah as SRH struggled with the bat again to post 134/7 in their 20 overs. Wriddhiman Saha top scored for SRH with 44, while Josh Hazlewood 3/24 and Dwayne Bravo 2/17 were the best bowlers for CSK.

Ruturaj Gaikwad (45) and Faf du Plessis (41) gave a start of 75 runs in 10.1 overs to the three-time winners, following which there was a slight hiccup as CSK lost four wickets inside six overs.

Ambati Rayudu (17*) and MS Dhoni (14*) finished off the game in the final over with two balls to spare, with the CSK captain smashing a vintage six off Siddharth Kaul to take his team into the playoffs for the 11th time in 12 seasons that they have participated in the league.

READ ALSO: Cricket fraternity reacts as MS Dhoni's six takes CSK into playoffs; defeat SRH by 6 wickets

Dhoni hasn't had much of a role to play with the bat in this season but remains one of the greatest finishers the game has seen. He turned back the clock with a massive six to finish the game as he did several times in the past. 

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CSK now have 18 points from 11 matches and one more win will assure them of a top two finish. SRH unfortunately are eliminated with just 4 points from 11 matches.