In a thrilling encounter, Lucknow Super Giants made a fantastic start to their innings as Kyle Mayers blazed to a 21-ball half-century during the powerplay while chasing a daunting target of 218. However, three quick wickets from the home side slowed down their chase. Nicholas Pooran then stepped up for LSG and kept the chase alive, but CSK kept taking wickets and are now close to victory despite a high number of wide and no balls bowled by their bowlers.
Earlier, after winning the toss, KL Rahul opted to bowl first, and LSG bowlers got off to a sloppy start. CSK made the most of it, with Ruturaj Gaikwad leading the charge. He and his opening partner Devon Conway amassed 79 runs in the powerplay, which is the highest ever for CSK at the Chepauk in IPL history. Gaikwad eventually fell for a well-made 57 off 31 balls, while Conway was on 47 off 29 when he was dismissed. After that, CSK’s scoring rate slowed down a bit, with Shivam Mavi and Moeen Ali finding it difficult to score. But the duo managed to hit a few big shots before getting dismissed. The rest of the CSK batsmen contributed with quickfire cameos, and skipper MS Dhoni smashed two sixes in his brief cameo to cross the 5000-run mark in IPL. In the end, CSK posted a massive total of 217/7 in their 20 overs.
This one’s for you, Anbuden! 💛#CSKvLSG #WhistlePodu #Yellove 🦁💛 pic.twitter.com/tmxYaVP7z4
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) April 3, 2023
This match was CSK’s first at the Chepauk since 2019, and the crowd was ecstatic to see their team back in action on their home turf. Despite the initial hiccups, CSK put up a solid batting performance, and their bowlers managed to keep LSG in check despite the high number of extras they conceded. It was a thoroughly entertaining game of cricket that kept the fans on the edge of their seats till the very end.
