CSK Skipper MS Dhoni Gets Stamp Of Excellence From Ravi Shastri

Ajinkya Rahane, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Ravindra Jadeja were the biggest stars for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as they secured a comprehensive 7-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians (MI) in 'El Clasico' of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Saturday. While it's the players who drew the plaudits for their heroics on the field, the captain MS Dhoni silently strategised the downfall of the 5-time champions. Lauding the way Dhoni used his bowlers, crafting the perfect strategy against MI's batters, former India head coach Ravi Shastri lauded the CSK skipper.

"MS Dhoni made excellent use of Santner and Jadeja against Mumbai Indians batters. He knew that on such wickets these two can turn the tide, and that is why he showed more confidence in them," Ravi Shastri said on Star Sports.

Mitchell Santner and Ravindra Jadeja were the chief wicket-takers for CSK against MI, taking 2 and 3 wickets respectively. Courtesy of their performance, the hosts were restricted to just 157 runs.

Put to bat first by CSK, MI was off to a good start and were cruising at 61/1 in six overs after the powerplay. But spinners Ravindra Jadeja (3/20), Mitchell Santner (2/28) and pacer Tushar Deshpande (2/31) crushed MI's batting line-up. Except for Ishan Kishan (32) and Tim David (31), MI's exciting, star-studded line-up fell flat. Stars like Rohit (21), Cameron Green (12), and Suryakumar Yadav (1) failed to fire.

Hence, MI could only put up 157/8 in their 20 overs.

In the chase of 158, after falling of Devon Conway for a duck, Ajinkya Rahane lit up Wankhede Stadium with his 61 off 27 balls, with seven fours and three sixes. Supporting knocks from Ruturaj Gaikwad (40*), Shivam Dube (28) and Ambati Rayadu helped CSK chase the target in 18.1 overs.

CSK has jumped