The Ekana Cricket Stadium happens to be the home to the Lucknow Super Giants but the fans painted it yellow to welcome the defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, match no. 34. But to the fans’ surprise, Chennai had an awful start after being asked to bat first.
The top-order collapsed and the middle-ordered faltered too as the reigning champions struggled at 87/4. Meanwhile, Ravindra Jadeja anchored the innings with his first fifty this season and lastly, legendary MS Dhoni’s cameo of 9-ball 28 turned up the heat.
The former CSK captain smashed 3 boundaries and sixes during his short stay in the middle as the team’s score skyrocketed to 176 for 6 in 20 overs. His stroke play looked magical while the fans cheered for him in unison, making Ekana look like Chepauk.
A finishing flourish that entertained a packed house in Lucknow ️Adding smiles to the faces of the Lucknow crowd, the MSD way #TATAIPL | #LSGvCSK | @ChennaiIPL | @msdhoni pic.twitter.com/vdCzmuzqPS
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 20, 2024
The noise in the stadium was deafening loud and Quinton de Kock’s wife Sasha, who was in attendance, received a notification on her smartwatch about the same. She shared a photo on her Instagram story which revealed that the sound levels had hit 95 decibels when Dhoni walked to bat.
Stay updated with the latest from IPL 2024, including top contenders for the IPL 2024 Orange Cap and IPL 2024 Purple Cap. Explore the complete IPL 2024 Schedule, IPL 2024 Points Table and players with the Most Sixes, Most Fours and Most Fifties in IPL 2024
“Loud environment. Sound levels hit 95 decibels. Just 10 minutes at this level can cause temporary hearing loss,” read the text on Sasha de Kock’s smartwatch.
However, Dhoni’s knock wasn’t enough to ensure a third straight win for the defending champions, as KL Rahul and Quinton de Kock both scored half-centuries to put LSG on course for their fourth victory this season.
De Kock and Rahul shared a brilliant 134-run opening stand which more or less blew away any chance CSK had of winning the game. Skipper Rahul top scored with a 53-ball 82 to lay the foundations of the run chase with De Kock, who scored 54 off 43 as her wife watched him do well in person. While Rahul and De Kock were both dismissed, LSG went on to win by eight wickets and one over to spare.
Comments
0 comment