IPL 2018: Chennai Super Kings reach their 7th IPL final
Chennai Super Kings have secured themselves a place in the final of 2018 IPL after a 2-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first qualifier at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. A brilliant innings from Faf du Plessis (67 off 42 balls) and Shardul Thakur's cameo (15 off 5 balls) guided the yellow brigade home. Here is the match report with interesting stats.
Brathwaite's heroics go in vain
Batting first, Sunrisers Hyderabad were put on the back-foot, losing Shikhar Dhawan, Shreevats Goswami and Kane Williamson within first 30 deliveries. The likes of Shakib Al Hasan and Manish Pandey, too, couldn't withstand Chennai's attack. However, in the end, cameos from Carlos Brathwaite (43*) and Yusuf Pathan (24) ensured that SRH could post a respectable total of 139/7.
DJ Bravo lives for the big games
Deepak Chahar got off to a crackling start as he dismissed Dhawan on a golden duck. For the first time, a wicket has fallen off the first ball in a play-off, semis or finals of IPL. CSK's Bravo is the man for the big occasion. He has picked 23 wickets in 13 play-offs games more than anyone else. He ended with figures of 4-0-25-2.
Early losses but Faf du Plessis shows his class
Chennai Super Kings also had a rocky start as they lost 4 important wickets of Watson, Raina, Rayudu and Dhoni for just 39 runs. However, Faf ensured that he kept going and in the end, he took Chennai home with 5 balls to spare.
Heart and soul of Chennai Super Kings
MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina made their 20th appearance in an IPL playoff, semi-final or finals. This is the most among all players. Both of them have missed the last four stage only once. MS Dhoni missed the last four in 2016 (Rising Pune Supergiant) while Suresh Raina missed the last four in 2017 (Gujarat Lions).
Earlier than expected
This is only the third time in the Indian Premier League that MS Dhoni came out to bat within first 4 overs. The other two instances in the past were against Delhi Daredevils in 2010 and Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2016.
