Message to the fans - we'll come back strong, Says MS Dhoni As He Sets Eyes On Next IPL

Ruturaj Gaikwad hit his third consecutive fifty of IPL 2020 as Chennai Super Kings bowed out of the competition by dumping Kings XI Punjab out too. CSK, who were already out of the playoffs race, thrashed KXIP by nine wickets in Abu Dhabi.

Chasing 154, CSK crossed the finishing line in the 19th over. Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis gave CSK a solid start by adding 82 runs in less than ten overs. Gaikwad and Ambati Rayudu then shared an unbeaten stand of 72 runs to take their side with utmost ease. Gaikwad remained unbeaten on 62 while Rayudu scored 30.

Earlier in the game, KXIP finished their innings on 153 for 6 after MS Dhoni won the toss and invited them to bat first. KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal gave them a solid start by adding 48 runs for the first wicket before both of them departed in quick succession.

The Punjab-based outfit lost Nicholas Pooran and Chris Gayle cheaply too and found themselves four down for 72 in the 12th over. Runs were hard to come by and it looked like they might finish well below 150. However, Deepak Hooda’s unbeaten knock of 62 from just 30 balls helped Punjab put up a challenging total.

MS Dhoni’s reaction:

Speaking at the end of the match, MS Dhoni started by saying that IPL 2020 was a difficult campaign for his side. He was also all praises for the way his team responded in the second half of the competition after the tough start to the season. The CSK skipper also had a message for the fans as he said ‘we’ll come back strong’ next season.

“It was a difficult campaign. We committed a lot of errors. The last four games were a template of where we would like to be. Proud of the guys because if you’re lagging behind for 7-8 games, it becomes really difficult. It’s not easy, you won’t want to be in a dressing room that’s not enjoying cricket. Proud of them,” said MS Dhoni.

“Message to the fans – we’ll come back strong. That’s what we’re known for. We are eighth in the table but 14 points and we could have qualified. This is a season where only one team played well or most teams played well,” he added.

Also Read: It’s Going To Be Another Important Game: Rohit Sharma Ahead Of SRH Clash

Also Read: BCCI Books Jio As The Title Sponsors For The Upcoming Women’s T20 Challenge