IPL 2018: 5 things that worked just perfect for Chennai Super Kings

This is one of those seasons where things were not completely perfect for the Chennai Super Kings, but when they’ll look back at it and reminisce these memories after a long time, they’d be pretty happy with what they managed. Well, that’s what life is all about, managing all the imperfect things in an organized way to reap a perfect result. What a scintillating exhibition it was from the Super Kings to have come this far against a few odds. They definitely had a brilliant team, but there was a lot of scepticism surrounding their success. Putting all that to bed, they managed to lift the Indian Premier League title for the third time in their history. Before the season started, MS Dhoni clearly suggested that the team was picked to win this IPL rather than thinking about the years to come. As it turns out, his inputs and methodology proved to be world-class and CSK emerged victorious. Here are five things that went in favour of MSD and his side which made the title chase a lot easier. 1. Opting for experienced players Shane Watson. (Photo Source: Twitter) With players like Faf du Plessis, Harbhajan Singh, Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, it was clear that MSD was counting on their experience. These players did return the favour with a brilliant rendition, especially the likes of Rayudu and Watson. Whilst Rayudu’s good form earned him a place in the Indian side, Watson’s dream run helped him announce that he’s not done yet. Faf du Plessis didn’t play a lot of games due to an injury, but he stood upon a very important occasion. That knock against the Sunrisers in the first Qualifier was an absolute peach, exactly what we expect from a Proteas captain. Watson’s experience came in handy in the final, where he struggled to get off the mark, but the way he bounced back and scored a hundred was just stuff of legend. 2. Bowlers’ late resurgence Chennai Super Kings’ Lungi Ngidi. (Photo by IANS) People call CSK an amazing chasing unit as their bowlers always gives them a big total to chase. It maybe wasn’t the case a few seasons back, but this time around, their bowlers were awful in the first half. Since players like Rayudu and Dhoni were on a purple patch, they managed to reap much better benefits. But in the second half, the likes of Lungisani Ngidi and Shardul Thakur were pretty impressive. Thakur’s death over bowling helped Dhoni opt for just one foreign bowler whilst Ngidi was the star of the season for them with the ball. To be fair, the way they bowled against SRH in the last two overs of the final played a huge part in earning their side some momentum before the run chase. 3. MS Dhoni’s batting form Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni. (Photo by IANS) MS Dhoni the captain is always a master and we need not specifically mention that anymore. But in the last couple of years, his batting form dipped quite palpable. Let that be for India or in the IPL, he wasn’t being up to the mark. But this season, a different Dhoni turned up for the IPL and took us back in time to the good old days. He was hitting the ball as cleanly as he did a few years ago, during his prime. He registered some big knocks against KXIP and RCB and entertained the fans profusely with his power-hitting. This was his second best season with the bat (455 runs), almost managing to overhaul his previous best of 461 runs in 2013. 4. An emotional connection with the fans Suresh Raina with a die-hard fan. (Photo Source: Twitter) No matter which stadium they were playing, it was clear that CSK had a better fan base, even more than the home club. Stadiums like Wankhede, Eden Gardens, Rajiv Gandhi Stadium, Chinnaswamy, where the support is pretty biased, CSK managed to bring a plethora of yellow shirts and it explains what the club means to their fans. A fact that a train was provided to the fans to travel to their adopted home venue in Pune shows how much the club values the fans as well. Whilst this IPL has given us many stories to cherish, one of the best was the relationship between these amazing players and their scintillating admirers. 5. Different players stepping up on different days Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni and Ambati Rayudu. (Photo by IANS) Maybe playing under a captain like MS Dhoni is the exact inspiration a player needs to find form. We’ve seen a great example of it this season, as 8 different players managed to win Player of the match awards, more than any other club. It really was a collective effort from them to win the trophy and even the stats prove the same. Whilst the season started with DJ Bravo humiliating Mumbai in the IPL opener, it ended with Watson doing the same to SRH in the final at the same venue. In between, a lot of other players like Rayudu, Du Plessis, Deepak Chahar, MS Dhoni did their bit and eventually, they ran away with the trophy. For all the latest cricket news and other updates follow CricTracker.

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IPL 2018: 5 things that worked just perfect for Chennai Super Kings

Putting all the scepticism aside, they managed to lift the Indian Premier League title for the third time this season.

5. Different players stepping up on different days

For all the latest cricket news and other updates follow CricTracker.

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