By Rohit - Apr 04, 2023 12:23 AM
The IPL 2023 season has already kicked off in grand style, and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) hosted the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the iconic Chepauk stadium in Chennai. The match was filled with twists and turns, and it ultimately ended with a CSK victory, thanks to the heroics of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway.
LSG won the toss and chose to field first, hoping to restrict CSK to a manageable total. However, things didn't go according to plan for the visitors, as Gaikwad and Conway took the attack to the opposition from the get-go. The pair smashed 79 runs in the powerplay, which is the highest score for CSK at the Chepauk in IPL history.
Despite losing Gaikwad early on for 57 off 31 balls, Conway continued to pile on the runs, scoring 47 off 29 deliveries. CSK's scoring rate did take a hit after the fall of these two wickets, with Shivam Mavi and Moeen Ali struggling to get going. But they managed to hit a few big shots before getting dismissed, which helped the team maintain a healthy run rate.
Rayudu played a crucial cameo towards the end of the innings, scoring an unbeaten 27 off 14 balls. However, the biggest cheer of the night came when MS Dhoni came out to bat. The former Indian captain smashed two sixes off the only three balls he faced, crossing the 5000-run mark in IPL history.
Chasing a mammoth target of 218, LSG started off strong, with Kyle Mayers scoring a blistering 21-ball half-century in the powerplay. The home side managed to pull things back with three quick wickets, but LSG's chase picked up pace once again thanks to Nicholas Pooran.
However, CSK kept chipping away at the wickets and managed to restrict the visitors, despite sending in a plethora of wide and no balls. The LSG batsmen couldn't build any substantial partnerships, and they eventually fell short by a considerable margin.
Not the result we wanted, but the boys showed great character. We'll keep our heads up and keep working. pic.twitter.com/b8OWfxcJwl
— K L Rahul (@klrahul) April 3, 2023