IPL 2022, CSK vs KKR: MS Dhoni ended a 2-year wait for an IPL 50 when the former Chennai skipper hit 50 in just 38 balls, not out. Dhoni’s late blitz helped Chennai bounce back from a poor start to finish 131st on the board in Mumbai.
CSK vs. KRR: MS Dhoni ends 2-year drought for IPL 50, shines in opener (courtesy BCCI)
HIGHLIGHTS
- MS Dhoni achieved his first IPL 50 in 3 years
- Dhoni’s 38-ball, 50 not-out helped CSK bounce back from a poor start
- Dhoni hit a six and a seven and got the Wankhede crowd excited
MS Dhoni showed his old self with the racquet as the Chennai Super Kings star put on a show with a 38-ball 50 against Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) opener at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.
After being greeted on the field with loud “Dhoni, Dhoni” cheers from the crowd at Wankhede Stadium on Saturday, Dhoni took the fans back in time and took his time to get going. Dhoni went at-bat when CSK was in trouble, tumbling at 61 for 5 in the 11th over with very little contribution from the top order.
Dhoni struggled to get going as new KKR captain Shreyas Iyer used his spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine against the former CSK captain. At one point, Dhoni was hitting 15 balls from 25, but the World Cup winner and former skipper got going in the 18th over, bowled by Andre Russell.
MSD Thala! #WhistlePodu #Yellow #CSKvKKR pic.twitter.com/H3FQj9oxlE
– Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) March 26, 2022
Dhoni found some momentum and brought the attack to Russell, hitting the West Indian all-rounder for 3 boundaries in the 18th over, after which he scored the first maximum of his innings in the 19th over from Shivam Mavi.
Much like in his prime, Dhoni gave the Chennai innings some much-needed late impetus by hitting 7 boundaries and a six. He made 50 not outs in just 38 balls, with his last 35 runs coming in just 13 balls.
DHONI BREAKS DRAVID’S RECORD
With his 24th IPL 50, Dhoni ended a two-year wait for a half-century in the well-funded T20 league. Before Saturday, Dhoni had last scored a fifty in the 2019 IPL.
Meanwhile, Dhoni also broke Rahul Dravid’s record by becoming the oldest Indian batsman to reach a fifty in the IPL.
Dhoni was 40 years and 262 days old on March 26, while the second oldest was Dravid who was 40 years and 116 days old when he scored fifty at the IPL.
DHONI FIFTY LIFTS CSK 131
Dhoni and his captain Ravindra Jadeja went unbeaten for 70 runs in less than 10 overs, while Chennai scored 131 in 20 overs. Dhoni Blitzkrieg meant Chennai amassed 47 runs in the last 3 overs after looking like they were struggling to get past 100.
