IPL 2025 ka 67th match tha CSK (Chennai Super Kings) vs GT (Gujarat Titans) ke beech. CSK ke liye ye season bilkul bhi accha nahi gaya—13 matches me se 10 haar gaye the, aur already playoffs se bahar ho chuke the. Bas ek match bacha tha, woh bhi sirf izzat bachane ke liye. GT ke liye situation serious thi—agar woh jeet te, toh 20 points milte aur top 2 spot secure ho jata, matlab unko final tak pahuchne ke do mauke milte.
MS Dhoni ke future ko leke bhi kaafi speculation chal raha tha—shayad unka aakhri match as captain ya even as a player ho sakta hai.
Toss aur Team Changes
CSK ke captain MS Dhoni ne toss jeeta aur batting choose ki. Unka kehna tha ki pitch batting-friendly lag rahi hai, aur ground ki dimensions bhi batters ko advantage deti hai. Unhone clearly bola, “Table ke last pe hain, jeet ho ya haar, wahi rahenge. Toh better hai ki cricket enjoy karein.”
CSK ne ek bada change kiya—Ashwin ko hataake Deepak Hooda ko team me laya gaya. Ye move dekhke fans kaafi mixed reaction de rahe the. Kahi log bol rahe the ki “Hooda ko slip kar diya jaise koi masterstroke ho,” lekin CSK ki management players ko revive karne ke liye jaani jaati hai, toh shayad Hooda pe unka bharosa tha.
GT ki taraf se Kagiso Rabada ki jagah Gerald Coetzee ko laya gaya. Captain Shubman Gill ne bola unka waise bhi plan tha bowling se start karne ka, aur pitch me thoda early movement dekhne ko mil sakta tha—jisme Coetzee jaise express pacer kaafi useful ho sakta hai.
CSK ki Playing XI aur Strategy
CSK XI: Ayush Mhatre, Devon Conway, Urvil Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Deepak Hooda, MS Dhoni (c/wk), Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed
Impact Players: Pathirana, Vijay Shankar, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Ravichandran Ashwin
CSK ne Ashwin ko bench pe daal diya aur Hooda ko number 7 pe khilaya, matlab unka plan tha ki middle overs me acceleration aaye, aur Dhoni finisher ka role nibhaye jaise pehle karte aaye hain.
Top order me Ayush Mhatre ka strike rate 190 tha powerplay me, aur Devon Conway comeback ke baad stability la rahe the. Urvil Patel aur Jadeja uske baad aaye. Interesting baat yeh thi ki Jadeja ko number 4 pe promote kiya gaya, shayad unke all-rounder factor ka use karne ke liye. Middle me Dube aur Brevis the—dono big hitters. Dube ne ab tak 19 sixes maare hain, aur Brevis 12 sixes ke saath second highest CSK batter hain sixes ke mamle me.
GT ki Playing XI aur Bowling Plan
GT XI: Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Gerald Coetzee, Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Arshad Khan, Prasidh Krishna
Impact Players: Sai Sudharsan, Anuj Rawat, Mahipal Lomror, Washington Sundar, Ishant Sharma
GT ne Coetzee ko team me laake pace attack aur strong banaya. Rabada consistent hai, but shayad rest ya pitch ke conditions ko dekhte hue unko chhoda gaya. Siraj aur Krishna ke saath Coetzee ne fast bowling ka trio banaya. Rashid Khan aur Sai Kishore ne spin ka front handle kiya.
GT ka plan simple tha: tight lines daalna, kyunki Dhoni khud bol chuke the ki loose bowling is pitch pe pakki pitai milegi.
Match Ka Background Aur Importance
CSK ke liye match ek tarah se farewell jaisa tha—na sirf season ka end, balki shayad Dhoni ke IPL career ka bhi end. Ek fan ne X pe likha:
“Agar ye Dhoni ka last match hai, toh main lucky hoon ki maine unhe stadium me live dekha.”
Team young players ke saath experiment kar rahi thi—jaise Mhatre aur Brevis ko promote karna, aur Hooda ko ek aur chance dena. Badi baat yeh thi ki unhone Ashwin ko side kar diya, jabki pehle usse number 4 pe khilaane ka experiment bhi ho chuka tha (aur flop gaya tha).
GT ke liye match high-stakes tha—win karke top 2 finish lena tha. Gill, jo ab India ke Test captain bhi ban chuke hain, unke upar expectations kaafi thi. Team balanced thi—Buttler, Rashid, aur strong pace attack ke saath.
Pitch Report aur Conditions
Narendra Modi Stadium ka pitch batters ke liye heaven jaisa tha—runs expected the, aur pitch me zyada change nahi aane wala tha. Sirf initial overs me pacers ko thoda help mil sakta tha. Dhoni ne bat pehle isliye liya kyunki record yehi bolta hai ki yahaan pe pehle bat karne wali teams ko advantage milta hai.
Weather garmi bhara tha—40°C tak din me, aur raat ko 30°C ke aas paas. Bowlers ke liye tough conditions thi.
CSK ne Deepak Hooda ko Ashwin ke jagah khilaake batting ko thoda aur depth dene ki koshish ki. GT ne Coetzee ko laake apna pace game aur dangerous banaya. CSK pride ke liye khel rahi thi, GT playoffs me double chance ke liye. Dhoni ka possible farewell tha, aur dono teams ne conditions ke hisaab se smart changes kiye. Match kaafi emotional aur strategic dono tha—ek taraf CSK ka rebuild mode, dusri taraf GT ka title chase.
