Kolkata Knight Riders claimed their third title in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on Sunday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai as the Southern city acknowledged the side from Kolkata’s domination throughout the season with a magnanimous heart despite the disappointment of the beloved local side Chennai Super Kings’ failed title defence.
Chennai Super Kings missed out on qualification to the playoffs in the most excruciating fashion. They were ousted from the top four spots on the last day of their group-stage fixtures in a season which was touted as poster boy MS Dhoni’s last hurrah in the iconic yellow. He had already passed the captain’s armband to Ruturaj Gaikwad and remained right behind the youngster to guide him towards a new dawn.
The defending champions got their season off to a promising start with a 6-wicket win against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the curtain-raiser at the Chepauk and went on to double their points early in the season with yet another win over Gujarat Titans. CSK suffered their first loss to Delhi Capitals in Vizag but the fans took consolation from the unbeaten 37 runs Dhoni smashed in just 17 deliveries. Chennai remained on the road as they visited Sunrisers Hyderabad in a match that ended with SRH claiming a 6-wicket win.
A return to home comforts helped Chennai get back on the track with a 7-wicket win over KKR even outplayed Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede. Just as it seemed that CSK were getting back to their brilliant best, the five-time winners slumped to two back-to-back defeats against Lucknow Super Giants.
Chennai exacted revenge on the Sunrisers with a massive 78-run win but couldn’t manage to extend their winning run as they suffered a 7-wicket defeat to Punjab at home. But the side was back in contention for a playoff berth as they leapfrogged into the third position with a 28-run win at the picturesque Dharamshala.
CSK’s poor record away from home during the season continued as they went down by 63 runs to Gujarat Titans before placing themselves in the pole position to qualify for the playoffs with a 5-wicket home win over Rajasthan Royals in their final game of the season at the Chepauk.
It was widely anticipated that the joint-most successful side in the history of the tournament would seal a top-4 place heading into their final group-stage game of the season against RCB at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. However, RCB picked up a 27-run win to extend their winning run to a streak of 6 games and knock out CSK.
While a plethora of things are still up in the air, with Dhoni’s future taking centre stage and the impending mega-auction ahead of the next edition certain to establish a merry-go-round of players swapping shirts, fans can be assured of the abilities of the new captain, who has led from the front with his 583 runs this season.
IPL 2024 Chennai Season Review:
Played: 14, Won: 7, Lost: 7, Points: 14
Table Position: 5
CSK’s High-point in IPL 2024
Ruturaj Gaikwad’s brilliance with the bat through the season as he finished second in the run scorers’ rankings, only behind Virat Kohli, and MS Dhoni’s swashbuckling shows against SRH, LSG and DC will remain long in the memories of the yellow army.
Most Valuable Player
Ruturaj Gaikwad demonstrated that the added pressure of leadership would not hinder his abilities with the bat as he notched up four half-centuries and a ton to boot in the season to vie for the orange cap as he maintained his position among the top echelons of the scale.
CSK’s Low-point in IPL 2024
Facing elimination from the race for the playoff dramatically at the hands of noisy neighbours RCB at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on the last game day of the group stage would certainly sting the Chepauk faithful.
Statistics:
Most Runs: Ruturaj Gaikwad- 583 runs in 14 games, Stike Rate: 141.16
Highest Individual Score: Ruturaj Gaikwad- 108* vs LSG at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Most Wickets: Tushar Deshpande- 17 wickets in 13 games, Economy: 8.83
Best Bowling Figures: Tushar Deshpande- 27/4 vs SRH at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
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