Chennai Super Kings (CSK) won their fourth Indian Premier League title after the side defeated Kolkata Knight Riders in the final of the 2021 edition in Dubai. MS Dhoni's CSK registered an emphatic 27-run victory over the Eoin Morgan-led KKR to close on Mumbai Indians' record for most titles in IPL history (5).
After putting 192/3 on the board, the CSK restricted Kolkata Knight Riders to 165/9, thanks to a combined bowling effort from the side as Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar, Dwayne Bravo and Josh Hazlewood were all among the wickets for the side.
After the victory, Deepak Chahar called Dhoni the "captain of the ship," adding that the side made a great recovery from the previous edition where CSK finished a meager 7th.
"We have had many ups and downs. Very happy that we finished well. Happy to be on the winning side in my 4th IPL final. There was dew. But we handled pressure thanks to the experience. We were on the lookout for a wicket because we knew their lower order wasn't performing," said Chahar.
"We had a bad season last season but we had the confidence to do well this season. We all play for MS as he is the captain of the ship," the bowler said about Dhoni.
Moeen Ali, who finished the season with 357 runs in 16 games as well as six wickets to his name, hailed youngster Ruturaj Gaikwad, who won the Orange Cap.
"Can't describe how I'm feeling. To do it with this franchise is great. He's got no weakness (on Gaikwad who was standing next to him). He's so calm. Has got every shot. Hopefully in the future will play for India. So calm and so clear in what they want to do (on CSK). No changes. Could've been dropped a couple of games ago. It's such a grounded and humble team," said Ali.
