New Delhi, May 20 (UNI) A brisk 43 off 20 balls by young Ayush Mhatre and a late flourish from Shivam Dube powered Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to a competitive 187 for 8 in their 20 overs against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Match 62 of the Indian Premier League here on Tuesday.
Akash Madhwal and Yudhvir Singh shared six wickets between them to keep RR in the hunt.
Put in to bat after RR opted to bowl, CSK were jolted early as Yudhvir removed Devon Conway (10) and Urvil Patel (0) in the second over. Mhatre, however, counter-punched with a flurry of boundaries, smashing eight fours and a six in his sparkling cameo before mistiming one off Tushar Deshpande (4-0-33-1) to Kwena Maphaka.
The powerplay carnage continued as CSK raced to 68/3 by the end of the sixth over, but wickets fell in clusters. Ravichandran Ashwin (13) fell trying to slog Wanindu Hasaranga (4-0-27-1), while Ravindra Jadeja (1) was brilliantly caught by Dhruv Jurel at mid-wicket off Yudhvir.
Dewald Brevis (42 off 25) kept the scoreboard moving with three sixes and two boundaries, but Akash Madhwal returned to castle him in the 14th over just when he looked set for a big one. Shivam Dube (39 off 32) and Dhoni (16 off 17) added 43 runs in the final stages, including three sixes between them, but both perished in the 20th over as Madhwal (4-0-29-3) struck twice in three balls.
Dube was first to go, caught by Jaiswal at long-on off a low full-toss. Two balls later, Dhoni attempted to paddle a low full-toss from Madhwal but only managed to lob it to short fine where Deshpande took a sharp reflex catch. Dhoni, ever the sportsman, walked back with a wry smile, acknowledging the fielder's effort.
Earlier, Mhatre had entertained Delhi fans with a series of dazzling shots — his boundaries included a flick over mid-wicket, a backfoot punch past cover and an audacious upper cut over third man. His aggressive 50-run stand with Ashwin set the tone after the early double blow.
Anshul Kamboj (5* off 3) and Noor Ahmad (2* off 1) added a few late runs to help CSK finish on a high at 187/8.
For RR, Yudhvir (4-0-47-3) was expensive but effective, while Madhwal’s disciplined death overs tilted the momentum back in the visitors’ favour.
Rajasthan will need 188 to win and maintain their playoff momentum in the 2025 IPL season.
UNI BDN SS