In a surprising turn of events, the Punjab Kings clinched a convincing victory against defending champions Chennai Super Kings in the ongoing IPL 2024 T20 cricket series. The match, held at Chepauk on May 1st, witnessed Punjab outplaying Chennai by 7 wickets.
Chennai, batting first, struggled to find momentum, posting a modest total of 162/7. Captain Ruturaj Gaikwad emerged as the highest scorer, contributing 62 runs. However, Punjab’s bowlers, Rahul Sahar and Harpreet Brar, restricted Chennai’s scoring, taking two wickets each.
Chasing 163 runs for victory, Punjab displayed exceptional batting prowess. Jonny Bairstow (46), Riley Rousseau (43), and captain Sam Curran (26*) led Punjab to a comfortable win in just 17.5 overs.
This victory marks Punjab 4th win in 10 matches, keeping their hopes alive for a spot in the playoffs. On the other hand, Chennai faced a setback, registering their 5th defeat in 10 matches. Known for their dominance at their home ground, Chepauk, Chennai suffered a rare defeat on home soil, courtesy of an outstanding performance by the Punjab team.
With this win, Punjab has now secured victory in their last five encounters against Chennai, equaling Mumbai’s record for the most consecutive wins against the Super Kings in the IPL series.
Adding a touch of humor, before the match, the Punjab team playfully warned Chennai with a tweet featuring a photo of Vijay and Vijay Sethupathi from the climax scene of the Tamil movie Master. After their victory, Punjab further teased Chennai by posting a photo of Vijay Sethupathi with the caption “Soli Mudinju,” referring to their triumph over Vijay team in the film.
The victory pushed Chennai down to 7th place in the points table, mainly due to Thala Dhoni jersey number, 7. With this unexpected upset, die-hard Chennai fans are eagerly waiting to see if CSK will retaliate by defeating the Punjab team in the next match scheduled for May 5th.