Finishing things off in style like MS Dhoni, LSG’s Marcus Stoinis smashed a boundary to seal a six-wicket win over CSK in the IPL 2024.
Over 400 runs were scored at the MA Chidambaram Stadium and Australia’s Marcus Stoinis was the last man standing on Tuesday. Silencing the packed Chepauk with his counterattacking knock, Stoinis slammed his maiden Indian Premier League century to rescue KL Rahul’s Lucknow Super Giants in the high-scoring thriller against Chennai Super Kings. Finishing things off in style like MS Dhoni, Stoinis smashed a boundary to seal a six-wicket win over the defending champions in match No.39 of the IPL 2024.
Lucknow Super Giants’ Marcus Stoinis shakes hands with Chennai Super Kings’ MS Dhoni (L) at the end of the Indian Premier League (IPL) match(AFP)
Reacting to Stoinis’ heroics after LSG recorded a stunning win over CSK, the Lucknow Super Giants mentioned that there was another ‘MS’ who finished things off in style at Chepauk. Taking to social media to further praise the Australian all-rounder, LSG uploaded a video of Stoinis talking about Dhoni. Giving the former CSK skipper a special mention, Stoinis opened up about Dhoni’s mantra of winning crucial battles in run-chases.
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‘Dhoni told this one thing to me’
“MS Dhoni told this one thing to me. He said in big games, everyone thinks that I’ve got to do something extra. I’ve got to do something different. His mantra and how he speaks to himself is he stays there, he stands still and he says everyone else is going to change. I’m going to be the only one here that doesn’t change and that holds him ahead of everyone else,” Stoinis recalled.
Chasing a gigantic total of 210 at the Chepauk, KL Rahul’s LSG were reduced to 88-3 in 10.6 overs. Taking the CSK bowlers to the cleaners, Stoinis stunned Chepauk into silence with his first-ever century in the IPL. With his lone warrior act, Stoinis shattered multiple records as the LSG batter remained unbeaten on 124 off 63 balls. Batting at a strike rate of over 196, Stoinis smoked six sixes and 13 fours in his match-winning knock. The Australian batter registered the highest individual score against CSK in the IPL.
“It’s not just go go go; there were some bowlers we wanted to target and some bowlers we wanted to be more cautious against. There was a phase where I wasn’t able to hit the boundaries so it was great Pooran could come in and take the pressure off. Lots of ebbs and flows, just tried to keep it in control. You’re planning and structuring, you’re not liking certain bowlers, and you’re liking others more,” Stoinis said after the match.
