IPL 2024: Chennai Super Kings vs Lucknow Super Giants, 39th Match - Who Said What?

The 39th match of IPL 2024 witnessed an intense clash between Chennai Super Kings and Lucknow Super Giants at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Opting to bat first, CSK displayed a stellar performance, scoring a formidable total of 210 runs. Despite early setbacks with Rahane and Mitchell's dismissals, the team showcased resilience.

Ruturaj Gaikwad stole the show with a brilliant century, his second in the IPL, scoring 108* off 60 balls, including 12 boundaries and three sixes. While Jadeja's promotion didn't yield good results, Dube's aggressive batting alongside Gaikwad turned the game in CSK's favour. Dube's explosive 66 off 27 balls, featuring seven sixes, provided crucial momentum to CSK's innings.

In the chase, Lucknow kept the contest alive, with Marcus Stoinis playing a heroic innings of 124* off 63 balls, comprising 13 fours and six sixes. Stoinis's exceptional performance led LSG to a thrilling victory over CSK by six wickets with three balls remaining. Nicholas Pooran's quickfire 34 off 15 balls, the second-highest scorer of the innings, also contributed significantly to LSG's success, highlighting the impact of Stoinis's innings on the match's outcome.

Also Read - Most Wickets in IPL 2024 

Who Said What?

Losing skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad said:

Tough pill to swallow, but good game of cricket. LSG played really well in the back end. We had the game in control till 13-14 overs, but Stoinis played a great innings. (On dew) It played a part, there was a huge amount of dew and it took our spinners out of the game. We could have otherwise controlled the game better and taken it deeper. But these are parts of the game, can’t control it. Jaddu is batting at number 4 since we lost the second wicket within the powerplay. (On Dube’s entry point) Our thinking is clear that after the powerplay if there is a wicket, Shivam will come out to bat. We can’t force batters to get out after. To be honest, I thought our target wasn’t enough, it was just about par because of the dew we’ve seen during our practice sessions. But credit to the way LSG batted.

Winning skipper KL Rahul said:

Very special, especially when it’s a game like that. We were way behind the game when we were batting so it was very special to pull it off. It was a fresh start, both teams started off at 0. Different conditions here. I think they started off really well and put us under pressure. 170-180 would’ve been a great total here but they batted really well. Full credit to Stoinis. It was not just power hitting, it was very clever batting. He picked his bowlers and played very well. (On sending Stoinis at 3) We felt like we needed to be braver and capitalize the powerplay and needed 1 power-hitter in the top-3. I’ve realized that T20 cricket has changed in the past couple of years, 170-180 doesn’t always cut it. You need to go harder in the powerplay and the impact player rule also gives you a bit more depth. (On the change to his own batting) Haven't played much T20 cricket so happy that it’s coming off. There’s no set plan, apart from the openers, everyone else is ready to go out whenever we feel it's right. We’re going to keep it flexible. (On his catch earlier) Not bad, not bad… I hope I get the catch of the tournament award (smiles), I was just being modest.

Player of the Match Marcus Stoinis said:

In these competitions, there are plenty of better opening batters better than me so I’ll leave it to them. It’s not just go go go, there were some bowlers we wanted to target and some bowlers we wanted to be more cautious against. There was a phase where I wasn’t able to hit the boundaries so it was great Pooran could come in and take the pressure off. Lots of ebbs and flows, just tried to keep it in control. You’re planning and structuring, you're not liking certain bowlers and you’re liking others more. I do think T20 cricket is changing, the scores that have been scored, the impact player role and how teams are taking on the bowlers. I’ve got a great relationship with the coach (Australian Head coach), me not getting a contract, I knew that long ago. It’s great to let the kids come in and get an opportunity, I’m happy to let them take my spot. But on the playing front, I’d like to play and contribute.