IPL 2019: Twitter reacts as MS Dhoni helps Chennai Super Kings beat Kings XI Punjab by 22 runs

MS Dhoni in action [Image: BCCI/IPLT20.com]

MS Dhoni made three changes to the playing XI. Faf du Plessis, Harbhajan Singh, and Scott Kuggeleijn came in for Mitchell Santner, Shardul Thakur, and Dwayne Bravo. All the three changes made by MSD worked wonderfully well for CSK and as a result, CSK won the match by 22 runs.

Faf du Plessis, who opened the innings with Shane Watson, tailored a significant partnership of 56 runs for the first wicket. While Watson scored at nearly run-a-ball during this partnership, Faf had a strike rate of 145.

After Watson got, Du Plessis stitched another useful partnership of 44 runs for the second wicket with Suresh Raina. The South African got out in the fourteenth over after scoring a 38-ball 54.

The very next ball after Faf's dismissal, Raina followed him back to the pavilion. As a result of the two quick wickets, the scoring rate dropped but the two new batsmen - MS Dhoni and Ambati Rayudu - made the most of it in the final overs.

In the last three overs, Dhoni and Rayudu scored 44 runs against Andrew Tye, Sam Curran, and Mohammed Shami. As a result of Dhoni's 23-ball 37, Chennai ended up posting 160 in 20 overs.

Right at the start of the chase, the Kings XI Punjab were jolted by the performance of Harbhajan Singh. In his two-wicket maiden, Singh dismissed the dangerous Chris Gayle and Mayank Agarwal.

After losing Gayle and Agarwal, KL Rahul and Sarfaraz Khan steadied the innings by adding 110 runs for the third wicket. Those runs were key to the chase but that rate at which they came costed KXIP in the end.

They took as many as 93 balls to add 110 runs to the scoreboard as the CSK spinners kept their stranglehold during the middle overs. Both the batsmen scored their half-centuries but couldn't up the ante when the time came.

In the final three overs, Punjab needed 46 runs with two settled batsmen and Dhoni entrusted the task of defending the total of Kuggeleijn, who conceded 27 runs in his first two overs. Kuggeleijn stepped to the task and ended up dismissing both KL Rahul and Sarfaraz. As a result, CSK won the match by 22 runs and went to the top of the table.

Here's how Twitter reacted to CSK's fourth win this season in the IPL:

Harbhajan is an underrated IPL player. He’s been consistently brilliant in the the league for a decade. He combines beautiful flight and dip with occasional flatter and faster trajectories. When the pitch takes turn he gets great bite and fizz. He’s a joy to watch. #IPL #CSKvKXIP
— Freddie Wilde (@fwildecricket) April 6, 2019

Harbhajan Singh delivers a match-winning performance against a team sponsored by Aaj Tak. #CSKvKXIP

Vikrant Gupta right now : pic.twitter.com/ycZAt53IOG
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) April 6, 2019

Dhoni practicing to face Ashwin from the non strikers end. #CSKvKXIP pic.twitter.com/oIiZUxi9A7
— Bollywood Gandu (@BollywoodGandu) April 6, 2019

Love watching #RaviAshwin bowl . It’s a geometry test for the Batsman , many have no idea how to calculate the angles.
— Vikram Sathaye (@vikramsathaye) April 6, 2019

3/46 in 8 overs for chennai ashwins vs chennai super kings #CSKvKXIP #IPL2019
— Gaurav Kalra (@gauravkalra75) April 6, 2019

Dhoni be like "Agle saal se RCB se khelne ki practice kar rha hai kya?"#CSKvKXIP pic.twitter.com/SCS0bu4fg7
— Rishabh Srivastava (@AskRishabh) April 6, 2019

Yo boy CHAHAR! Brilliant comeback. Two horrible deliveries very well covered up. #IPL
— Silly Point (@FarziCricketer) April 6, 2019

Bharat Ratna to Ravindra Jadeja, he is the only person in world who fooled MS Dhoni so many years that he is an all rounder.#CSKvKXIP
— Sunil- The cricketer (@1sInto2s) April 6, 2019

Brilliant run out by Dhoni but bails didn't come out. Tough luck. KL Rahul survives. #CSKvKXIP #KXIPvCSK pic.twitter.com/b0Mh78mxQJ
— Sir Jadeja fan (@SirJadeja) April 6, 2019

Wine
Leather Jacket
CSK player

The Older, The Better.
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) April 6, 2019

It is picking his bowlers and getting it right against them is what has been the hallmark of @msdhoni's career.
— Nikhil 🏏 (@CricCrazyNIKS) April 6, 2019

MS Dhoni in the 20th over in IPL
Balls faced - 212
Runs scored - 509
Strike Rate - 240.1
Sixes - 41#CSKvKXIP
— JSK (@imjsk27) April 6, 2019

If after watching 1000 Dhoni innings if you are still asking for him to accelerate in 15-16th over, you shouldn't watch cricket when Dhoni is batting.
— Ro✨ (@lndianCaptain) April 6, 2019

Not a Dhoni's day.

He missed DRS earlier and now bails didn't come off!
— Broken Cricket (@BrokenCricket) April 6, 2019

Dhoni just convinced the bowler to not take a review thinking it was not out (it was plumb) but you won't see people trolling him because his name isn't Virat Kohli #DhoniReviewSystemDawwww
— babu bisleri (@PUNchayatiii) April 6, 2019

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