Ajinkya Rahane lit up his dwelling floor for the rival aspect Chennai Super Kings (CSK) along with his serene batting on Saturday (April 8). Making his debut for the franchise, Rahane smashed 61 runs off simply 27 deliveries with seven fours and three sixes to his identify. Courtesy of his knock, CSK chased down 158 runs with out a lot fuss and gained the sport by seven wickets. Rahane additionally smashed the quickest fifty of IPL 2023 to this point going previous Jos Buttler and Shardul Thakur who had reached the half-century in 20 balls earlier in the season.
Meanwhile, Rahane additionally slammed joint-second quickest fifty for CSK in the historical past of IPL with solely Suresh Raina forward of him who had scored a 16-ball fifty on the identical venue in opposition to Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab) again in May 2014. Moeen Ali can be second in this facet having scored a 19-ball half-century in opposition to the Rajasthan Royals final 12 months on the Brabourne Stadium.
On his CSK debut, Rahane clearly left behind the likes of MS Dhoni, Faf du Plessis and Matthew Hayden. These are actually the stalwarts of CSK who had hit fifties in fast time for the aspect. While Dhoni had hit a 20-ball half-century, Du Plessis and Hayden had reached the milestone in 22 balls.
After the match, Ajinkya Rahane revealed that he got here to know that he was taking part in solely earlier than the toss. He additionally credited MS Dhoni and head coach Stephen Fleming for giving freedom to the gamers. “Really loved it, I acquired to know earlier than the toss. Moeen was unwell. And Flem informed me I used to be taking part in. Had a very good home season. I simply attempt to preserve my form. Focus on timing.
“It is all about you have to feel that you are playing a match. IPL is a long tournament and you never know when you get an opportunity. I always enjoy playing at Wankhede. I have never played a Test here. I would want to play a Test here. Important thing about Mahi bhai and Fleming is they give freedom to everyone. Mahi bhai told me to prepare well,” Rahane mentioned.
