Chennai

Chennai Super Kings returned to winnings ways on Monday (Apr 8) at 'fortress' Chepauk, beating Kolkata Knight Riders by seven wickets, chasing an under-par target of 138. Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad (67*) shepherded the chase with immaculate precision, scoring his first fifty of the season, when it looked like CSK might struggle the same way as KKR did on the slow pitch. 

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Rachin Ravindra (15) opened the batting with Gaikwad and stroked a few good shots before Vaibhav Arora got his number in the fourth over. A returning Daryl Mitchell (25) walked out to bat at no. 3 and started rotating the strike without much fuss. 

While most KKR batters attempted to murder the ball, Gaikwad used his finesse and artistry to carve it to different parts of the park. His craft was most evidently on display when Anukul Roy came to bowl in the powerplay. Gaikwad simply made room for himself and timed the ball to the fence on three occasions, setting the tone of the chase. 

From thereon, it was a stroll in the park for CSK as none of the KKR bowlers could utilise the conditions to their advantage. The two-time champions and their record buy, Mitchell Starc, once again failed to come good while Varun Chakaravarthy lacked that decisive punch.

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Narine did flatten Mitchell's offstump as the Kiwi ran down the track and played the wrong line, but it proved inconsequential in the match's grander scheme. Gaikwad joined by Shivam Dube (28) provided the finishing touches and CSK cantered to their third win of the tournament.  MS Dhoni did play a cameo at the end, providing the fairytale finish to the 'Thala' fans.   

Also read | IPL 2024: ‘MS Dhoni is not that aggressive, but...’ - Gautam Gambhir lauds CSK star, recalls rivalry with him

KKR struggle at Chepauk 

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The foundation of the impressive victory was laid in the first innings when the likes of Ravindra Jadeja, Mustafizur Rahman and Tushar Deshpande took down the powerful KKR batting order. 

Deshpande struck with the first ball of the match by sending Phil Salt back to the pavilion on a golden duck. Sunil Narine (27) and Angkrish Raghuvanshi (24) did salvage the powerplay phase by stitching a 56-run partnership but things soon unravelled. 

Jadeja, brought in to bowl the seventh over struck twice to send both the batters home before coming in the subsequent over and accounting for Venkatesh Iyer's dismissal as well.  

Also read | IPL 2024: 'He ended up walking onto the field' - Shane Watson recalls funny incident with MS Dhoni at CSK

Skipper Shreyas Iyer (34) tried to hold one end but wickets continued to tumble on the other. Even the powerful West Indian, Andre Russell (10), could not come to terms with the pace of the wicket and holed out at long-on, trying to go big. 

The defeat halted KKR's winning juggernaut while CSK maintained their perfect record at Chepauk.