LSG vs CSK: Ruturaj Gaikwad hails MS Dhoni after defeat, but drops "10-15 runs short" bombshell

The Ruturaj Gaikwad-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) locked horns with the KL Rahul-led Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the 34th of the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024) on Friday, April 19, at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow.

Lucknow Super Giants won the toss and opted to bowl first in the match. They brought in Matt Henry in place of Shamar Joseph, who struggled on his debut while Chennai Super Kings brought back Deepak Chahar and Moeen Ali for Daryl Mitchell and Shardul Thakur.

Batting first, CSK posted 176/6 on the board, thanks to the heroics of Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni as well as decent performances from Ajinkya Rahane and Moeen Ali. Jadeja, Rahane, and Moeen scored 57, 36, and 30 runs before MS Dhoni played a stupendous cameo of 28 runs off 9 deliveries.

Defending the total, CSK bowlers looked completely out of form and allowed LSG to register 89 runs in the first 10 overs. After Quinton de Kock (54) and KL Rahul (82) got out, Nicholas Pooran and Marcus Stoinis steered LSG to an 8-wicket win over CSK.

Speaking after the match, CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad said that they finished well with the bat and lauded MS Dhoni but asserted that they were 10-15 runs short. Ruturaj Gaikwad elaborated:

"We finished well with the bat, couldn't have asked more with the situation we were in. After powerplay, we couldn't capitalize on the start we got and we kept losing wickets at regular intervals. I would say we were 10-15 runs short. Slightly difficult with such a total, with the impact sub rule you need 10-15 or even 20 runs extra. Pitches like these seem sluggish to start off with but with dew coming on it gets better, 190 would have been a good score."

Ruturaj Gaikwad added that they need to improve their powerplay bowling and mentioned that they will be well-prepared when they face LSG at home next.

"One area we would like to improve in taking wickets in the powerplay. That will put pressure on the opposition. We need to work on it. Good to play them again (next game at Chepauk). We will come up with good homework done now that we have three home games."

Talking about the Chennai Super Kings' position in the Indian Premier League 2024 standings, they were in the third position on the table with 8 points before the match against the LSG. After the match, they have retained their position.

Chennai Super Kings' Previous 5 Matches Results In The Indian Premier League 2024

In their previous 5 matches, Chennai Super Kings were good with performances as they emerged victorious in three matches and lost two matches.

On April 14, 2024, CSK won the match by 20 runs against their arch-rivals Mumbai Indians (MI). On April 08, 2024, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) crushed the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 7 wickets with 14 balls remaining.

Before the above-mentioned wins, Chennai Super Kings were at the receiving end of two defeats against the Pat Cummins-led Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on April 05 by 6 wickets and against the Rishabh Pant-led Delhi Capitals (DC) on March 31 by 20 runs. Meanwhile, they registered a crushing victory over the Gujarat Titans (GT) on March 26 by 63 runs.