CSK vs GT, IPL 2023 Final Highlights: Jadeja's last ball boundary helps Chennai win 5th title in thriller

Confetti everywhere after Dhoni, Jadeja and Rayudu receive the trophy from BCCI president Roger Binny. Dhoni was standing sheepishly behind Binny initially as he asked Jadeja and Rayudu to receive the trophy first before finally joining in. Then, after a brief, fleeting moment with that cup, he gives it to his teammates and disappears into the background. But he can't really do that, can he? He is MS Dhoni after all, try as he might he will never really be in the background. Just this time though, it is other yellow shirts who dominate the camera frame and lay their hands on that coveted trophy that Dhoni has lifted five times now. A great way to bid farewell to Ambati Rayudu. Dhoni himself started off in his interview sounding like he is about to announce his retirement but really, all he wanted to say was that he intends to return the love shown towards him by every city in the country this year by working his backside off and getting back next year. That stumping of Shubman Gill showed that he remains one of the most potent wicketkeepers in this tournament and he is also a lightning between the wickets. Let's hope the next one year is easy on him and he can take his place back at the helm for the yellow brigade. An incredible season has come to an end today - one that was filled with last-ball thrillers and yet rather surprisingly, no Super Overs. Of course it had to end with a six and a boundary off the last two balls of a final that stretched into a third day. The CSK players are posing with the trophy one by one. The ground staff, meanwhile, is posing for a photo that will probably be a trophy in their respective homes for the rest of their lives and that is a photo with MS Dhoni as the CSK captain goes to them and then takes a lap around the ground to thank the fans. We, meanwhile, are signing off at the end of an epic final that fittingly ended an epic IPL season. 

“Looking for an answer? (He asks Harsha Bhogle after the latter asks him about his legacy) This is the best time to announce my retirement. But the amount of love I have received all over. The easy thing would be to walk away from here, but the harder thing would be working hard for 9 months and try to play another IPL. It would be a gift from me, won't be easy on the body. You do get emotional, the first game at CSK everyone was chanting my name. My eyes were full of water, I needed to take some time off in the dugout. I realised I need to enjoy this. I think they love me for what I am, they love that I am so grounded, I don't try to portray something I'm not. Just keep it simple. Every trophy is special, but what is special about IPL is every crunch game you need to be ready. There were lapses today, the bowling department didn't work, but it was the batting department that took the pressure off them today. I do get frustrated, it is human but I try to step into their shoes, every individual deals with pressure differently. Ajinkya and a few others are experienced, so you don't worry. If anyone is confused, then can always ask. The special thing about Rayudu is he will always give his 100% when he is on his field. But with him in the team, I will never win the fairplay award. I've been playing with him for a long time, since the India A tours. He's a player who can play spin and pace equally well. It is something really special.”

“I think we tick a lot of boxes as a team. We play with a lot of heart, really proud of the way we kept fighting. We have a motto - we win together, we lose together. I'm not going to make excuses, CSK played the better cricket. We batted really well, special mention to Sai, not easy to play that well at this level. We have been backing the boys and trying to make sure we get the best out of them. But their success is their success. The way they have put their hand up and delivered - Mohit, Rashid, Shami everyone. I'm very happy for him, destiny had this written. If I had to lose, I'd rather lose to him. Good things happen to good people, and he's been one of the best people I know. God has been kind, God has been kind to me as well but today was his night.”

What a season this has been from them and took a truly ridiculous effort from CSK in the end for them to lose. Young players like Gill and Sudharsan have flourished while old workhorses like Mohit Sharma have got a second life playing with them. 

He has had his say so no more words from him but this is a good excuse to check out his incredible stats for the season. Shubman Gill scored 890 runs in 17 matches at a strike rate of 157.80 and average of 59.33 with four fifties and three hundreds. He was just 10 runs away from becoming the second batter after Virat Kohli to score 900 runs in a single season. Those who saw Kohli in 2016 would have never imagined that a player would come close to challenging his stats from that year but this is exactly what Gill has done this season.

Mohammed Shami finishes the season on 28 wickets in 17 matches, just one ahead of his teammates Mohit Sharma and Rashid Khan. That basically just how good GT's bowlers have been this season. “(On powerplay bowling) It is always enjoyable for the viewers, but difficult to execute. Only two fielders allowed outside, lots of responsibility but that's my role in the team. If you are bowling in the right areas, you will get rewards - be in red ball or white ball.”

Well it hasn't been a totally disappointing season for DC. They were fair and behaved nicely enough to finish on top of the Fair Play Award standings.

Rashid Khan wins catch of the season for his catch that dismissed Kyle Mayers and Faf du Plessis wins the award for the longest six.

He will be taking the Orange Cap later on as well, having gone past Jos Buttler's record for second most number of runs in a single season of the IPL. “Means a lot. The hard work that I've put in is going in the right direction for me. I think it was very important to start well and I started well. By the business end of the tournament, I converted the starts into big ones. I practiced a lot of [sixes] and I changed my technique a little bit for the death. The SRH hundred was about control and the MI was knowing the situation and taking on the opposition. For any batsman, it was important to anticipate and I did that”

No surprises there, Jaiswal played some of the most stunning knocks of the season and this was one that was filled with many superlative innings. He scored 625 runs in 14 matches at a strike rate of 163.61 and average of 48.08. Jaiswal also hit five half centuries and a century. That really should have been four half centuries and two centuries as he scored an unbeaten 98 off 47 balls in an utterly stunning display of big-hitting against KKR earlier this month. 26 of those runs came off just the first over of the RR innigns.

He scored 47 off 25 and put up an opening partnership of 74 runs in just 6.3 overs with Ruturaj Gaikwad. “It was a long time to wait, very nervous but Rutu and I plotted how we'll go about it. It is the biggest win of my career. I give a lot of credit to Mike Hussey. Nice to be in those shoes and great to be part of this franchise,” he said. 

Simon Doull finally gets us underway with the presentations for the night. Krunal Pandya, whose Lucknow Super Giants had lost in the Eliminator to Mumbai Indians, is at the stadium and he and his brother Hardik could be seen having a long chat with Dhoni.

This is just the second time that an IPL final has been decided with a last-ball chase, the first being the very first one between Shane Warne's RR and MS Dhoni's CSK back in 2008. 171 may have only been a revised target but it remains the fourth highest succesfull run chase in an IPL final. Shivam Dube has struck 25 sixes this season, which puts him level with Shane Watson for most sixes in any IPL season. Watson had done that back 2018 playing for CSKas well. Devon Conway's tally ends at 672 runs, which is the second most runs for CSK in a single season. It is only behind the tally of 733 runs that CSK's current batting coach Mike Hussey managed in 2013.

While all the CSK players around him lost their heads and streamed on to the field, Dhoni chose to just sit where he is, clap a few times calmly and then proceed to get up from his chair as if he just saw a mundane defensive shot at the end of a non-event of an over in a Test match that is floating its way to a rather boring draw. Meanwhile, Jadeja ran his lap of honour and then reached Dhoni and that is when we saw something, something from the CSK captain. He lifted Jadeja up and shared a brief but quite firm hug with his ace all-rounder before his face settled back into that famous calm expression again. 

CSK have won 5 titles and this is now Rayudu's sixth, having won once with the Mumbai Indians. He is tied with Rohit Sharma for most wins in IPL finals. The CSK players dance around the IPL trophy that is on display by the boundary, good they didn't knock it over a la Manchester City with the Premier League trophy in 2018. They have won it but there is still time for them to lift it though, the dias for the presentation ceremony is only getting set up at the ground.

Hussey: “Hats off to Gujarat as well, they've been amazing through the season, but thankfully Jaddu got us over the line. Dhoni is an amazing human being. A good example is, in the qualifier, he was telling Senapati to remain calm, and he got us a crucial run-out. Some of those shots from Rayudu, the slower balls that he hit over cover, not many people can do that.”

Fleming: “It's a real caravan of cricket, and it comes down to the last two balls, and you're just sitting and watching. You age quickly when that happens. We were a little bit short in the bowling department to start, and Deshpande stepped up. Pathirana gave us a sting in the tail in the end overs.”

“I'm from Gujarat, and it's a special feeling. This crowd has been amazing. They were waiting for rain to stop till late night, I'd like to say a big congratulations to the CSK fans who came to support us. I'd like to dedicate this win to a special member of the CSK side, MS Dhoni. I was just thinking I need to swing hard, as much as I can. Where the ball will go, I was not thinking about that, just looking to swing hard. I was backing myself and looking to hit straight, because I know Mohit can bowl those slower balls.”

"It's a fairytale finish. I couldn't have asked for more. I'm fortunate to have played in really great sides. I can smile for the rest of my life. All the hard work I've done in the last 30 years, I'm happy I got to finish on this note. I would really like to thank my family, my father. Without them this wouldn't have been possible."

Commentators Simon Doull and Harsha Bhogle are trying to interview any player they can get their hands on. Here is a gist of what Rahane and Gaikwad had to say. 

Rahane: Credit goes to CSK management for backing me. They said they would back me completely if I got an opportunity. The victory is really special. Great team man [on Rayudu]. The knock he played today was really special.

Gaikwad: This one was special, because of how it went last year for us. To come back in style, win away games, win in Chepauk, and the finish was unbelievable. We would like to dedicate this win to Rayudu.

Jadeja hits it to fine leg and can you believe it!! A yellow tidal wave has come on to the field in Ahmedabad, CSK have equalled MI's record for most IPL titles. At the end of a final that has stretched into its third day, this tournament provides a final twist. They seemed to be done and dusted, did CSK. And then the second last ball went over long on and the last goes past short fine leg. Dhoni looked almost nonchalant when that went away, typical of him one would say. One has to feel for Mohit Sharma, he bowled a near perfect last over, errs with his line off the last ball and that costs his team a second consecutive IPL title. Hardik Pandya gives him a long hug while talking away into his ear. 

Ravindra Jadeja smashes the second last ball of the 2023 IPL over the bowler's head. CSK need 4 to win off the last, three for a super over.

What an over from Mohit thus far, just three off it. Drinks have come out for the bowler.

Dot ball to start off the over, big, big dot ball. Then Dube digs out a single. Jadeja on strike, CSK need 12 off 4…

Mohit Sharma bowling the last over, Dube is on strike on 30 off 18. Jadeja is there at the other end. This is what this season has come down to. It is nearly 1.30 am but that stadium is as alive and awake as ever.

CSK are 150/5, need 22 to win off 12 balls. Despite those wickets falling this is still their match to lose. Jadeja on strike with 1 off 1, Dube at the other end with 25 off 14.