IPL 2021: MS Dhoni’s daughter Ziva spotted praying for CSK during their match against DC

Chennai Super Kings, captained by MS Dhoni, have already qualified for the playoffs in the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League. However, there’s a mathematical chance of them slipping out of the top two and not getting a chance to play the Qualifier 1 and not having two cracks at playing the final. On Monday, 0ctober 4, Delhi Capitals defeated them by three wickets in Dubai.

The Super Kings failed to defend 137 as Rishabh Pant’s DC tracked down the target with two balls to spare. In the meantime, Dhoni’s daughter Ziva was seen praying for CSK to win during the fag end of the match. She was spotted, seeking divine intervention with closed eyes and folded hands. The game went down to the wire, but the Super Kings couldn’t secure a victory.

We were looking to get closer to 150, says MS Dhoni

After being sent in to bat first, CSK started fluently, scoring 26 runs in the first two overs. However, after Axar Patel dismissed Faf du Plessis in the third over, the Super Kings lost quite a bit of momentum. Despite Ambati Rayudu scoring an unbeaten 43-ball 55, the Yellow Army huffed and puffed to 136 for five in their allotted 20 overs.

CSK fought hard during the second half of the game, but Shimron Hetmyer stayed not out on 28 off 18 to see the Capitals over the finishing line. Shikhar Dhawan laid the platform for the run-chase, scoring 39 before Shardul Thakur dismissed him.

After CSK lost and slipped to second, Dhoni admitted that his team was unable to step on the gas in the dying stages. He felt that the pitch wasn’t an easy one to bat and a score around the 150-run mark would have been tough to track down.

“We were looking to get closer to 150. After we lost a few wickets, around the 15-16th over mark the platform was nice. We failed to accelerate,” Dhoni was quoted as saying in the post-match presentation ceremony.

“I thought it was a tough pitch. Anything close to 150 would’ve been a good score. It’s a two-paced wicket. It’s not like it slowed down drastically. Can’t just play your shots. That’s what the Delhi batters also faced,” he added.