IPL 2022, CSK vs KKR: MS Dhoni, Ajinkya Rahane, Umesh Yadav sparkle; Kolkata Knight Riders win IPL opener

Two Test specialists who were T20 hot property more than a decade ago and one retired 40-year-old part-time Team India mentor held sway as Kolkata Knight Riders started off with a six-wicket victory. Umesh Yadav was a late pick for KKR from the auctions, Ajinkya Rahane went for base price and MS Dhoni has just relinquished his final official leadership role - captaincy of CSK. But the Saturday fare at Wankhede was all about these three.

First up, it was Umesh. After new skipper KKR Shreyas Iyer won the toss on a lively pitch, the 34-year-old pacer got into his act right away. He worked up a good pace from just short of length and got some extra bounce. That was enough to dismiss new CSK star Ruturaj Gaikwad (0) in the first over that put the defending champions on the back foot. A couple of overs later, it was Umesh’s bounce again that got the better of Kiwi opener Devon Conway.

Umesh (2-20) bowled three on the trot in the Powerplay, restricting CSK to 35-2, and setting it up for the wrist spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine.

The duo strangled the CSK middle-order and they were 61-5 in the 11th over when Dhoni walked in. At 40, he has had a couple of tough seasons with the bat and was searching against Varun Narine. It seemed a matter of time before the old pro would be dismissed, but then it never happened.

Dhoni (50 no off 38 balls) gave himself time, played out the two spinners and got used to the pace of the pitch, before launching an assault on pacers Shivam Mavi and Andre Russell. Dhoni didn’t go for brute force but he looked to use the gaps and use the pace of the bowlers as 47 came off the last three. Dhoni completed his half-century in the last over while new skipper Ravindra Jadeja hit a last-ball