The world, including the great Virat Kohli, was at the edge of the seat when Indian ace MS Dhoni was scripting yet another tale in his book of legends. Dhoni-inspired CSK clinched the first spot in the VIVO IPL 2021 finals after beating Delhi Capitals in the playoff. With that, CSK have entered their 9th final in a total of 12 IPL seasons. The winner of the match was not decided until the last over. It was a night of two captains. On one side, we had MSD, who made all the right decisions, and on the other, there was Rishab Pant, who could have not gone more wrong to defend the total of 172 runs.
What went right for CSK?
1) Brilliant Captaincy
After a solid start in the chase, CSK found themselves in a tough situation as they were 149 for 5 in 18.1 overs. That’s when MSD decided to take matters into his own hand. Now, considering Mahi’s poor run in the IPL, it was a shocker to witness Dhoni coming to the crease before an in-form Ravindra Jadeja. Anyway, that’s exactly where MSD earns his money, he is always on point with his captaincy. MSD played a match-winning cameo of 6-ball 18 runs and carried his side to the finals of the IPL 2021.
2) Promoting Robin Uthappa
MSD made a tough call when he decided to drop Suresh Raina for Robin Uthappa. MSD’s decision to play Uthappa in the game turned out to be a fruitful one. Not only Uthappa made it to the CSK’s playing XI in a clutch game, but he was also promoted to the one-down spot ahead of Moeen Ali and Ambati Rayudu. Uthappa walked into the crease in the very first over itself. The Indian veteran played an important role in CSK’s win as he scored 63 runs in 44 balls. MSD played his cards right and got the crucial result.
What went wrong for DC?
1) Poor Captaincy
Regardless of the scenario, Kagiso Rabada should be completing his 4-over quota in every game. Asking Tom Curran to bowl the last over in front of MSD over Rabada was absolutely a no-brainer. At the age of 24, Pant became the youngest captain to lead an IPL team in a playoff, and sadly, his lack of experience as a captain was certainly visible with the loss.
2) 10 Runs short
Delhi looked comfortable while batting first. Prithvi Shaw was on a riot with his bat as he amassed a total of 60 runs in just 34 balls. However, Delhi’s middle-order failed to thrive on a solid start handed solely by Shaw. Nevertheless, Pant and Hetmeyer got the game back on track for DC but failed to launch in the last two overs of the game as they only managed to score 11 and 8 runs in the last two overs. CSK would have seemingly found it more difficult to win the game if DC added more 10-15 runs on the board.
