MS Dhoni scripts unique record with his brilliant fifty against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2022 opener

MS Dhoni turned back the clock with a vintage performance against Kolkata Knight Riders in the opening game of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 on Saturday (March 26). Dhoni slammed a brilliant fifty to help Chennai Super Kings (CSK) stage a fightback against KKR and post a respectable total on the board at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

Invited to bat first in the opening game, CSK got off to a woeful start as they lost openers Ruturaj Gaikwad (0) and Devon Conway (3) cheaply before RobinUthappa (28) and Ambati Rayudu (15) were sent back in quick succession. Captain Ravindra Jadeja did manage to hold one end to arrest the collapse but failed to get going as he stayed unbeaten on 26 off 28 balls.

40-year-old Dhoni, playing his first game after giving up the captaincy, stepped up yet again for the defending champions as he scored 50 off 38 balls with the help of 7 fours and a solitary six. Dhoni started slow and struggled to middle the ball but managed to finish in his own style as he helped CSK post 131 runs on the board from 61/5 in 11 overs.

With his fifty, Dhoni brought an end to an almost three-year-long drought for a half-century in the IPL and achieved a unique record. The former CSK skipper became the oldest Indian player in the history of the tournament to score a half-century. He surpassed the record set by Rahul Dravid, who scored a fifty at the age of 40 years and 116 days in 2013.

Oldest Indian batter to score an IPL fifty:

40y 262d - MS Dhoni v KKR, 2022
40y 116d - Rahul Dravid v DC, 2013
39y 362d - Sachin Tendulkar v DC, 2013

Dhoni last scored a fifty in the IPL during the 2019 season when he played a sensational knock of 84 runs off just 48 balls against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Despite Dhoni's stunning knock, CSK had ended up on the losing side as they lost the game by just 1 run.

Talking about the IPL 2022 opener on Sunday, KKR defeated CSK by six wickets after comfortably chasing down the target of 132 runs with nine balls to spare. Opener Ajinkya Rahane scored 44 off 34 balls and top-scored for the Shreays Iyer-led side as they resgistered a commanding win against Jadeja-led CSK.