Right, that's all from us from today's game. A commanding win for Chennai Super Kings and another deflating loss for Mumbai. A double-header comes to a close, but we will be back again for the two games tomorrow. Till then, this is me Ashish Pant, signing off on behalf of Deiva, Thilak and Ranjith. Good night!
Ravindra Jadeja is the Player of the Match: When we were bowling, the wicket was spinning. Me and Mitch [Santner] just spoke and looked to bowl in good areas. They have power hitters, so we could have gone for runs. The wickets here plays differently everytime. [On bowling with Santner] Whoever bowls at the start, will let each other about the tactics. We keep talking to each other.
First up, here's MS Dhoni who comes in to a rousing reception: It feels good, we lost Deepak [Chahar] in our first over. [Sisanda] Magala it was the first game. Was a bit of an issue to shuffle the bowler. But the spinners bowled really well. It was not turning much after the first six overs. It w as bit two-paced after that. The spinners were able to use that well later. Magala came back well, Pretorius was so good. It was a good bowling effort, despite losing our premier bowler. [On Tushar Deshpande] We believe in him. When you are new, you have a different sort of pressure. He had a very good domestic season, and we have been talking to him about his execution. He bowled a lot of no-balls, last two matches but is improving, The delivery he got Rohit out, was a beauty. [On Rahane] We spoke right at the start and he was like what are you looking for me and I told him what I had in mind. He is not someone who will consistently hit sixes but he is very sound technically. I was very happy with the way he batted. All the games are important. The first target is to win an away game and get to the qualifier. Important to look at the problem in front of you, get wins and gather points.
Time for the presentation
Rahane on his innings: Really enjoyed it. I just got to know before the toss that I am playing. Unfortunately, Moeen was unwell. I had a good domestic season and was batting well in the nets. I was just trying to play good cricketing shots, and not slog it over. It is all about maintaining your shape. You want to prepare mentally well, IPL is a very long tournament, and it all about staying positive and knowing your game. Mahi [MS Dhoni] bhai and Flem [Stephen Fleming] have given the freedom to other players. I was just told to focus on my strengths and focus on preparation. I love playing at the Wankhede, I know the ground well. Have not played a Test here, yet.
Ajinkya Rahane hands the Orange Cap to Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Rohit Sharma: We lost our way in the middle. Did not capitalise on the start. It was a good pitch, we were 30-40 runs short in the middle. Credit to their spinners, they bowled well, kept us under pressure and we did not respond well. We need to try different things, need to attack, need to be brave. We have a couple of guys who are young into the IPL. Gotta give some time to them. It will take time, but we need to back them up and show enough trust in their ability. The senior guys need to step up, starting with me. We know the nature of IPL. We need to get some momentum, and if you don't, it is going to be tough. Just two games, not all is lost, but the senior guys need to step up with the bat. That's the nature of the tournament. If you win, you can win on the trot. If you lose, it will hamper the momentum. We wanted to do a lot of things right. We have not been able to execute the things that we are speaking about in the change room. We have to do those things right. We know we had a very disappointing last season. You always start afresh. When we won the five trophies, we did not think about it. Every opposition is quality and you have to be the best to defeat them. These two games have happened now, you can't change. We have to learn and be more brave in doing stuff out in the field.
10.53pm That was domination personified by Chennai Super Kings who have scored a relatively easy win on Mumbai's home turf. Mumbai Indians got a good start in the powerplay in the first innings, but once Rohit Sharma fell, it all went downhill for them. The spinners strangled them in the middle overs as they finished on 157 for 8. Jason Behrendorff struck early, sending back Devon Conway. But, Ajinkya Rahane on CSK debut, was just sublime. He did not play a shot in anger, yet raced to 61 off 27 balls, in the process also scoring the fastest fifty of IPL 2023. Gaikwad once again remained unbeaten on 40, while he got good support from Shivam Dube and later, Ambati Rayudu. All in all, a complete performance from CSK, who move to fourth position on the points table.
Chants of we want Dhoni ring around the stadium. Here's Arshad.
END OF OVER:18 | 13 Runs | CSK: 153/3 (5 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 8.50, RRR: 2.50)
- Ruturaj Gaikwad40 (36b)
- Ambati Rayudu16 (15b)
- Jason Behrendorff3-0-24-1
- Kumar Kartikeya4-0-24-1
Jason Behrendorff back from around the wicket.
Chuvi : "Unpopular Opinion (Driven by past CSK V MI encounters): MI win by 1 run. "
END OF OVER:17 | 5 Runs | CSK: 140/3 (18 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 8.23, RRR: 6.00)
- Ambati Rayudu5 (10b)
- Ruturaj Gaikwad39 (35b)
- Kumar Kartikeya4-0-24-1
- Piyush Chawla4-0-33-1
Slip goes