MS Dhoni, Chennai Super Kings captain, singled out the team’s middle overs batting as the reason for defeat to defending champions Gujarat Titans on the opening day of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at Ahmedabad.
CSK opener Ruturaj Gaikwad slammed 92 off 50 balls and the team looked set for a 200-plus total in the world’s largest cricket stadium but with the second-highest score being 23 from Moeen Ali, Chennai could only post 178/7. Gujarat got to the target with four balls to spare as Shubman Gill scored a stylish 63 off 36.
Dhoni scored 14 not out of 7 balls batting at the No 8 spot.
“We all knew there will be dew. We could have done a bit more with the batsman ship,” Dhoni said after the match. “Ruturaj (Gaikwad) was brilliant, he times the ball well and he’s a pleasure to watch. The way he picks his options, it is pleasing to watch. I think it’s important for the youngsters to step in.”
Dhoni didn’t have much to regret about CSK’s bowling and praised IPL debutant Rajvardhan Hangargekar who scalped three wickets.
“I think Raj (Hangargekar) has pace and he will get better with time. Think the bowlers will get better, a no-ball is something that’s in your control, so you need to work on that. I felt two left armers will be a better option so I went ahead with them. Shivam (Dube) was an option, but I felt comfortable with the bowlers overall,” said Dhoni.
Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya was happy with how his teams pulled back things in the middle after CSK made a strong start.
“We did put ourselves in a difficult situation but Rahul and Rashid did very well. We were happy at the mid-innings because at one point they looked like getting 200, but we got those couple of wickets to pull things back.”
IPL 2023: Impact player makes debut in GT vs CSK match
On the impact player rule, he said: “Having this Impact rule makes my job difficult. I have too many options, and because of this someone will bowl less. This game I realised bowling hard lengths was the way to go, that’s why Alzarri bowled late.
“Having Rashid is a real asset, he will get you wickets and get you some runs late down the order as well.”
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