Coming into the tournament after a dismal outing in the 2022 edition, MS Dhoni’s CSK equalled Mumbai Indians (MI) record of five IPL titles under their name. The side clinched their record fifth title after beating GT in the IPL 2023 final that went down to the wire.
As CSK celebrated their triumph, skipper Dhoni couldn’t resist taking a light-hearted dig at Ambati Rayudu, one of the team’s key batter. Dhoni praised Rayudu for his wholehearted efforts by saying the Guntur-born cricketer always gives his 100 per cent for the team . But Dhoni also humorously remarked that having Rayudu on the team would prevent him from winning the Fairplay Award, as Rayudu has a habit of losing his cool on the field.
“Rayudu’s outstanding quality is that he always puts in 100% effort on the field. However, having him on the team means I will never win the Fairplay Award,” Dhoni was quoted as saying to Harsha Bhogle in the post-match presentation ceremony.
Rayudu proved to be instrumental for CSK in their summit clash win. He played a crucial inning of 19 runs in just eight balls, shifting the momentum towards Chennai at the right moment. He hit two humongous sixes and one four in his short but destructive knock.
Before the start of the scheduled final on Sunday, Rayudu had announced that he would retire after the end of the final, with there being no possibility of a ‘u-turn’ this time. After CSK won the title, the veteran batter broke down in tears. It was a fairytale finale for the talented batter who won his sixth IPL title as a player. Rayudu and Rohit Sharma, the current leader of MI, are the only two players in the history of IPL that have won the most IPL trophies individually.
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