‘Cometh the hour, cometh the man’ – MS Dhoni proved to be the most important player for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) once again on Saturday in the very first game since stepping aside as captain in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The legendary former Indian captain turned back the years as he scored a magnificent fifty versus Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the tournament opener at Wankhede Stadium. The 40-year-old scored the 24th half-century of his career, and he needed just 38 balls to achieve the same.
Made us Smile again! #THA7A #WhistlePodu pic.twitter.com/oERdmcaUN6
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) March 26, 2022
The half-century holds even more significance for MS Dhoni on a personal level because in the first match after giving up CSK’s captaincy, the veteran scored his first-ever fifty in IPL for 3 years.
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His last fifty came in IPL 2019, against Royal Challengers Bangalore. The wicket-keeper batsman had put up a 48-ball 84 but still ended up on the losing side, as RCB won the fixture, courtesy of a solitary one run.
After his latest half-century on Sunday, MS Dhoni set a unique record in IPL, becoming the league’s oldest scorer of a half-century at at age of 40 years, 262 days. On the way to his big-knock on Saturday, Dhoni surpassed the likes of Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar to top this illustrious list.
Knights Super Kings! #CSKvsKKR #WhistlePodu pic.twitter.com/XKgppIMNMc
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) March 27, 2022
Earlier in the game, CSK had stumbled to 61-5 in 11 overs, however, thanks to Dhoni’s inning, the defending champions were able to put up a respectable total of 131 runs on the board. CSK skipper Ravindra Jadeja managed to score 26 runs in 28 deliveries in his first game since taking over from Dhoni.
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In reply, KKR subsequently chased down the target with relative ease, thanks to Ajinkya Rahane’s statement knock of 44 in 34 balls.
