Chennai Super Kings beat the Gujarat Titans by 5 wickets in a dramatic last ball final of the IPL 2023. CSK won their fifth IPL title. They are tied to Mumbai Indians for most titles in the IPL’s history.
Batting first on a flat Narendra Modi Stadium ground, GT produced a massive total of 214/4 after 20 overs. The GT batting effort was led by Sai Sudarshan (96 runs off 47 balls), who fell short of a well deserved century.
Wriddhiman Saha’s critical half-century (54 off 39 balls) and crucial runs from Shubman Gill (39 off 20 balls) also aided GT. Due to a weather delay in the first over of the second innings, the match was shortened to a 15 over battle, with CSK’s DLS target of 171.
CSK’s pursuit was a true team effort, with all hitters chipping in with quickfire cameos, ending in a last ball victory. Ravindra Jadeja hit a six and a four on the final two balls of the match when 10 runs were needed.
It was a fitting send off for one of CSK’s veterans, Ambati Rayudu, who had declared his intention to retire after this game.
Let’s look at the 3 most important reasons for CSK’s victory.
1) CSK’s batting
CSK batted flawlessly as they chased down a goal that required them to score at 11.40 runs per over. Devon Conway (47 runs off 25 balls) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (26 runs off 16 balls) set the pace for the Super Kings with a 74 run opening partnership.
Following their rapid dismissals, Ajinkya Rahane (27 runs off 13 balls) and Shivam Dube (32* runs off 21 balls) took control of the innings. In the middle overs, they kept up with the required rate. Ambati Rayudu (19 runs off 8 balls) had a great cameo in his last outing to propel his team to victory.
With Ravindra Jadeja on strike, CSK needed 10 runs off the final two balls. Jadeja hit a six over long on to bring the total to 4 runs off the penultimate ball. Jadeja won his team’s fifth title with a leg-glance off a leg stump full toss.
2) CSK attacked Rashid Khan
Rashid Khan had a great economy rate of 6.67 throughout his IPL career. Rashid had another strong season this year, finishing third in the Purple Cap competition behind teammates Mohammed Shami and Mohit Sharma.
Rashid Khan took 27 wickets at an economy rate of 8.24 in 17 matches. In an ideal case, CSK would have played out the his overs.
However the case required CSK to pursue all of the GT bowlers. The Chennai team would have been well aware that in order to take on Rashid, they risked losing some wickets.
CSK took a risk that paid off when Rashid Khan gave up 44 runs in three overs at an economy rate of 14.67. He went wicketless. This victory in their mini battle with Rashid contributed significantly to CSK winning the title.
3) Wriddhiman Saha’s low strike rate
Shivam Dube had the lowest strike rate of any CSK player i.e. 152.38. Most GT players struck at a strong rate, with Sai Sudarshan (204.26) and Shubman Gill (195.00) keeping the innings moving quickly.
Wriddhiman Saha batted with a strike rate of 138.46. This strike rate would have been fantastic on a regular day. However, in a match where both sides scored at or around 11 runs per over, such a strike rate is subpar.
Saha batted approximately 40 balls, accounting for one third of the innings. In T20 cricket, the logic of a shorter innings with a high strike rate is considered better.
