IPL Time Travel Part 2: When Chennai’s Thala Returns

The game is about a comeback. Defeat the odds, beat Goliath, come out on top when no one expects you to, and rise back after a knock-out.

It is in these moments when your back is against the wall that the world reveals your truth. These are the moments when legends are made, and careers immortalized.

A similar story was seen in 2018. It was the return of the kings. This was Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s return to Chennai Super Kings.

Over the years, CSK has evolved into a phenomenon. It’s Not Just Another Franchise That’s Playing In IPL, If you are in the stadium or watching a CSK match at home, take a look at the stands, and you can tell how many fans the franchise loves.

So, when the yellow-senna returned in the 2018 edition of the IPL, something big was bound to happen.

The return was great, no doubt about it. But what made it even bigger was that no one even gave him a chance. To begin with, he was labeled as Father’s Army. The average age of his team was 33 years.

But as they say, the veteran has no choice. Well, CSK proved it. from Shane Watson dwayne bravo, Kedar Jadhavi To Ambati RayuduCSK had a man for every opportunity.

But the biggest positive was the performance of Mahendra Singh Dhoni. It looked like he was in the form of his life. In 2018 he was so good that fans started calling him Dhoni 2.0. He scored 455 runs in 16 matches at a strike rate of 150.66.

It all started with a thriller against arch-rivals Mumbai Indians. Batting first, Rohit’s team scored 165 runs. CSK got off to a bad start. Chasing 166, they were out of the game at 118/8.

Then came the ‘champion’. Dwayne Bravo came, scored 68 runs in 30 balls and turned the match around. Bravo got out on the last ball of the last over. Kedar Jadhav, who was walkout due to a hamstring injury, returned against Mustafizur in the last over. However, there was a catch, he could not run.

Seven runs were needed from the last six balls. The first three balls went in vain. Equation read – 7 runs | 3 balls.

And then, magic happened. Jadhav goes down on one knee and hits Fiji for a six. Imran Tahiro Throws his bat at the other end and Kedar rushes to hug Jadhav. The game was not over, but the emotions were so high that Tahir didn’t care.

On the next ball, Jadhav cleared his front leg, hammered the ball over cover and helped CSK win their first game of the season. It was a part. The victory of Mumbai Indians was looted. It was a magical win for CSK and a sign of things to come.

From there, it was all CSK. They reached the finals after defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad in Qualifier 1, a team they would eventually meet in the final.

Then came D-Day. 27 May 2018, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. It took two years to make it.

CSK won the toss and decided to bowl first. led by Kane Williamson47 and Yusuf Pathan’s 45, SRH scored 178 runs.

Halfway through the match, no one could have expected what was about to unfold. SRH didn’t know what to kill them. Even after CSK’s chase started, SRH was going well. Watson could not get out in 10 balls. They reduced CSK to 20/1 after 5 overs.

Then came the storm. It had to be Watson. Who can forget the iconic image of Watson’s bloody knee as he hit the ball through cover. Everyone who watched that match knew that it was more than just a final for Watson. It was about loyalty. It was about repaying the trust. It was about winning the title for the team that supported him over the moon.

In the chase, Watson scored an unbeaten 117 to guide his team to victory.

The final was of CSK. It belonged to Watson. It was every fan who waited two years to see their team back on the field.

Dhoni lifted the trophy of Chennai Thala was back, and so was the king.