Ajinkya Rahane Breaks MS Dhoni’s IPL Batting Record
Ajinkya Rahane’s debut for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) turned out to be a memorable one, as he smashed the fastest fifty of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The veteran batter reached the milestone in just 19 balls against his former team, Mumbai Indians, at the Wankhede Stadium, his ‘home’ ground.
Rahane’s knock helped him climb to the second spot in the list of fastest half-centuries for CSK, alongside all-rounder Moeen Ali. The record for the quickest fifty for the team is still held by Suresh Raina, who scored it in just 16 balls against Punjab Kings in 2014.
What’s more, Rahane’s 19-ball fifty helped him surpass his captain, MS Dhoni, who scored a 20-ball half-century against Mumbai Indians in 2012.
Aside from these records, Rahane’s innings had the highest strike rate of his IPL career at 225.9, with his previous best being 189.5 in 2018.
His knock also helped him break his record for the fastest fifty in IPL, which he set while playing for Rising Pune Supergiants in 2017.
How it Happened
The match started with an early blow for Chennai as fast bowler Jason Behrendorff dismissed opener Devon Conway on the fourth ball of the innings. But Rahane stepped up to the challenge, taking charge of the partnership with Ruturaj Gaikwad.
After easing off the pressure with a six over fine leg against Jason Behrendorff on facing his seventh ball, Rahane took down uncapped Indian pacer Arshad Khan in the fourth over of the match, hitting him for 23 runs.
Although MI posted a decent total of 157/8, with Ishan Kishan’s 32 runs being the highest score for the home side, CSK’s left-arm spinning duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Mitchell Santner picked five wickets in the game, preventing MI from building up a big score.
In the run chase, CSK lost their opener, Devon Conway, in the very first over, but Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ajinkya Rahane then added over 80 runs. Rahane was the highest scorer for the Men in Yellow with his 61 runs, and Ruturaj remained unbeaten on 40 to chase down the target of 158 runs.
The Indian star left-arm spinner Jadeja was later awarded player of the match for his figures of 3/20 in the match. In their next match, MS Dhoni-led side will take on the Rajasthan Royals (RR) on April 12 at Chennai.
Post Match Statements
Speaking after the match, Rahane said he always enjoys playing at Wankhede and hopes to play a Test match there someday. He also revealed that he was not sure about his place in the playing XI and found out just before the toss that he would be starting.
Rahane’s knock helped CSK chase down the target with ease, earning them their second successive win of the tournament, while Mumbai Indians suffered their second consecutive loss. With this performance, Rahane moved one step closer to overtaking Gautam Gambhir in the list of leading run-getters in the IPL.
As for CSK, they now have two wins in three games and are placed fourth on the points table.
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