MS Dhoni's 3 best knocks against SRH
The 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is going on in full flow and fans have been treated to some absolute thrillers in the last few days. One of the things that has given a lot of happiness to fans is the batting of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper MS Dhoni.
Since his international retirement in August 2019, fans have only seen him play in the IPL. As such, one can understand their emotions.
Although Dhoni has only faced a few deliveries so far in the IPL, cricket lovers have enjoyed whatever little was on display. The superstar will be in action on Thursday, April 21, when Chennai take on SunRisers Hyderabad at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Over the years, Dhoni has played some special knocks against the Hyderabad-based franchise and they will hope for something similar later tonight.
On that note, let's take a look at MS Dhoni's top three knocks against SRH.
#1 67 (Chennai, IPL 2013)
During an IPL game back in 2013, SRH scored 159 runs in the first innings, thanks to a half-century by Shikhar Dhawan and a terrific cameo by Ashish Reddy (36 off 16).
During the chase, MS Dhoni walked out to bat with his team in a pretty good position at 76/2. However, CSK lost a few wickets at the other hand and the skipper had to put his hand up for the team.
Dhoni made up for the lackluster batting by the others, scoring an unbeaten 67 off 37 deliveries. His knock included four sixes and seven boundaries, which helped his team achieve the target in the final over.
#2 61 (Pune, IPL 2017)
In 2017, MS Dhoni, whilst representing the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiants, played a classic knock against Hyderabad.
Batting first, SRH posted a total of 190 runs on the board, thanks to decent contributions from all their batters.
In response, RPS lost Ajinkya Rahane early but Rahul Tripathi and Steve Smith steadied the ship with a 72-run stand for the second wicket. However, both fell in quick succession and there were still plenty of runs required for RPS to win the game.
Enter Dhoni, who almost single-handedly won the game for his side. He smashed 61 runs off just 34 deliveries and found a little bit of support from Manoj Tiwary to win the game off the last delivery.
Dhoni was adjudged the Player of the Match for his sensational performance.
#3 63 (Ranchi, IPL 2013)
In September 2013, CSK and SRH faced off at Ranchi during the now-defunct Champions League T20. Batting first, CSK scored 202 runs for the loss of four wickets, riding on a special knock by Dhoni.
Suresh Raina laid the foundation by scoring 84 before the skipper smashed 63 off just 19 deliveries. Dhoni's knock included eight towering sixes and one boundary and he absolutely destroyed SRH in the death overs. He smashed five sixes in the 18th over off Thisara Perera.
SRH put up a great fight but eventually fell short of the target by 12 runs. Raina was adjudged the Player of the Match, but MS Dhoni played one of his best knocks in yellow in the game.