MS Dhoni finished off in style! Chennai Super Kings needed 13 runs off five balls against the Delhi Capitals when Thala – as CSK fans call MSD – hit three boundaries to take his team over the line, to the finals of IPL 2021. The yellow army defeated Rishabh Pant and company by four wickets. 

Dhoni’s cameo, 18 runs of six balls, made Indian skipper Virat Kohli ‘jump out of his seat’. 

“Anddddd the king is back ❤️the greatest finisher in the game. Made me jump Outta my seat once again tonight,” Virat Kohli tweeted tagging Dhoni. 

“The art of finishing @msdhoni style. What an absolute cracker of a game. So many memories come alive when you see MSD finish a game like that #Dhoni #DCvsCSK,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah tweeted. 

Chasing 173 runs, Chennai rode on half centuries by Ruturaj Gaikwad and Robin Uthappa and reached the target with two balls to spare. With the win, the CSK became the first team to reach the final. 

Also read: IPL 2021: Rishabh Pant’s one-handed sixes vs Chennai Super Kings light up Dubai. Watch

Asked to bat first, DC lost its opener Shikhar Dhawan (7) cheaply in the fourth over, Prithvi Shaw (60) kept scoring runs freely and hitting boundaries at ease. Apart from Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer (1), Axar Patel (10) could not contribute much. 

Rishabh Pant (51) and Shimron Hetmyer (37) upped the ante and clobbered the CSK bowlers all over the ground.

For CSK, Josh Hazlewood returned with figures of 2/29 in his stipulated 4 overs. Ravindra Jadeja, Moeen Ali and DJ Bravo returned with one wicket apiece.

Tom Curran took three wickets while Anrich Nortje and Avesh Khan got one each for the Capitals. 

Also read: IPL 2021: Delhi Capitals’ Rishabh Pant becomes youngest captain in playoffs

“It was a crucial innings. They were using the bigger boundary very well. I haven’t done a lot in the tournament,” Dhoni spoke about the innings after the game. 

“We are one side that hasn’t done promotions a lot. If a Shardul or a Deepak, they can look to get a boundary from the first ball. He is somebody who likes to bat up the order. Mo has done very well for us at 3. So we have left it open. Whoever gets out, one of you will bat at 3. We have just left it to god how we decide that (smiles). He (Ruturaj) is somebody who plays authentic shots. He is a good talent. It’s the full team. It was tough when we didn’t qualify last time. Emotions were high. Credit goes to the support staff and everyone in the team,” he added.