In IPL 2023, on Tuesday, Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team Chennai Super Kings defeated Hardik Pandya's Gujarat Titans by 15 runs in the first qualifier. Batting first, four-time champions CSK scored 172 runs for seven wickets in 20 overs. In response, the Gujarat team was reduced to 157 runs in 20 overs. After the match, Gujarat captain Hardik Pandya praised Dhoni and his captaincy. Hardik told where Gujarat went wrong in the match and how CSK took advantage of it.
What did Hardik say about Gujarat's defeat?
Hardik said- I think we did well in bowling, but there were some basic mistakes. This cost us the match. With the kind of bowlers we had, I thought we gave away 15 extra runs. We did many things right. We bowled a few softballs and a slower one in between. We were executing our plans and then in the middle we gave away a few runs. I don't think we need to dwell on it too much. We have to play (Qualifier-2) after two days. We have to play one more match to reach the final. Just focus on the things that we've done well this season.
Hardik praised his idol Dhoni
Praising Mahi's captaincy, Hardik said - this is the beauty of Dhoni. With his mind and the way he uses the bowlers, he makes sure you feel like he is adding 10 more runs to his total. We kept losing wickets and Dhoni kept making sure he used the right bowlers. I am happy for them. If we win the next match, it will be nice to play against Dhoni again on Sunday. Regret is not good in life, we were hoping that the dew would come, but it did not. We gave away 15 runs extra and we didn't do the right thing in both the departments. We will play the match again after two days and hope to do well.
Hardik's statement on Lucknow vs Mumbai match
Hardik was asked if he would watch the match between Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians on Wednesday. "Yes, my brother (Krunal Pandya) is playing, I hope to meet him in Ahmedabad," he said. Krunal is the captain of Lucknow Super Giants and his team will take on Mumbai Indians in the Eliminator on Wednesday. The Eliminator will also be played at the Chepauk Stadium in Chennai. After this, Qualifier-2 and the final will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
What happened in the match?
Talking about the match, in the first qualifier played in Chepauk, Hardik won the toss and decided to bowl first. Batting first, Chennai had a great start. Rituraj Gaikwad and Devon Conway shared an 87-run partnership for the first wicket. Rituraj got out after scoring 60 runs in 44 balls with the help of seven fours and a six. At the same time, Devon Conway played an inning of 40 runs in 34 balls with the help of four fours. Shivam Dubey got out by scoring one run, Ajinkya Rahane 17 runs, Ambati Rayudu 17 runs, and Dhoni one run. Jadeja and Moeen finally hit some big shots to take Chennai to a score of 172 in 20 overs. Jadeja was dismissed for 22 runs in 16 balls with the help of two fours, while Moin remained unbeaten after scoring nine runs in four balls. For Gujarat, Mohammed Shami and Mohit Sharma took two wickets each. Darshal Nalkande, Rashid Khan, and Noor Ahmed got one wicket each.
Shubman-Rashid's brilliant innings for Gujarat
In response, the Gujarat team was reduced to 157 runs in 20 overs. Wriddhiman Saha 12 runs, Captain Hardik eight runs, Dasun Shanaka 17 runs, David Miller four runs, Vijay Shankar 14 runs, Rahul Tewatia three runs, Darshan Nalkande zero and Mohammed Shami got out after scoring five runs. Shubman Gill, who is in excellent form, played an inning of 42 runs in 38 balls with the help of four fours and a six. At the same time, Rashid Khan finally scored 30 runs in 16 balls with the help of three fours and two sixes, but could not win his team. Noor Ahmed remained unbeaten after scoring seven runs. For Chennai, Deepak Chahar, Mahesh Teekshana, Ravindra Jadeja and Mathisha Pathirana got two wickets each. Tushar Deshpande took one wicket.
Lucknow vs mumbai match in the eliminator today
The team that wins Qualifier-1 goes directly to the final, so Chennai now has a direct entry into the final to be held on May 28. At the same time, Gujarat will now have to play Qualifier-2 to be held on 26 May. Gujarat will face the winning team of the eliminator match between Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians on Wednesday. The winner of Lucknow and Mumbai will play Qualifier-2, while the losing team will be out of the tournament. The winning team of Qualifier-II will advance to the final, while the losing team will be eliminated from the tournament.
