IPL 2021 Final: 5 reasons why Chennai Super Kings won their 4th IPL title

IPL 2021 final, CSK beat KKR

Chennai Super Kings were never counted amongst the favourites to win the title after a horrid 2020 season. Chennai’s stats might not be the best but with 11 playoffs, 9 finals & 4 titles in 12 tournaments, CSK is without doubt the most consistent franchise in the league’s history. Here is how MS Dhoni conducted the CSK opera to perfection in 2021.

1. The Openers
There are love stories and then there is Ruturaj Gaikwad & Faf du Plessis. The near perfect opening pair of Chennai Super Kings made sure that the middle order was almost never exposed as they put up big totals together. Individually Gaikwad & du Plessis ended up with 635 and 633 runs respectively in the season which ensured that CSK fans were never worried about the opening duties. This is also the 3rd instance in IPL history when 2 cricketers from the same side ended up scoring 600+ runs.

2. Moeen Ali at number 3
CSK missed a solid number 3 in 2020 and they rectified it by bringing in Moeen Ali for Rs 7 crore in the auctions. Ali proved to be exactly what the team needed and scored 357 runs this season along with a happy bonus of 6 wickets. The comfort of having the southpaw at number 3 gave the license to the openers which worked amazingly well in CSK’s favour.

3. Lord Shardul Thakur
Shardul Thakur was the knight in shining armour for Chennai Super Kings as he delivered almost every time when Dhoni handed him the ball. With an uncanny knack of picking up wickets and breaking partnerships, Shardul surprised almost all CSK fans barring his own team. Dhoni would always turn to the Palghar express for breakthroughs and the all-rounder never disappointed. Thakur ended the UAE leg with a stunning 16 wickets in 9 matches.

4. Jadeja’s all round show
Chennai always had the perfect all-rounder in their ranks and it was just a matter of time for him to click. Ravinder Jadeja was one of the biggest contributor with 227 runs & 13 wickets. Whether it was blasting Harshal Patel for 37 in an over to silently strangulating the opponent by drying up their run rate, Jadeja did everything perfectly for Chennai. The gun fielder in Jadeja also contributed by saving countless runs and taking 13 catches, the most in the league.

5. Dhoni’s captaincy
We will comeback stronger said MS Dhoni in 2020 after finishing 7th and the 40-year-old managed to turn things around without major changes the very next year. His batting was always questioned but no one questioned the mind of the former India captain as he conducted CSK’s opera to perfection. Team India & BCCI would be mighty pleased as this very man will be in the team dugout with his vast experience at the World T20.