Dugout News: Trivia/ Highlights: CSK vs RR
On Friday, 20 May, Rajasthan Royals defeated Chennai Super Kings by five wickets at Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai
R Ashwin shines in the match against his old teammates of CSKR Ashwin's resurgence as a Batsman
The win ensured that the team got slotted in Qualifier 1 alongside Gujarat Titans. Batting first, Chennai Super Kings didn't get off to a good start. Moeen Ali's 93 off 57 and MS Dhoni's 26 off 28 came as significant contributions to post a target of 151.
The Rajasthan Royals, too, got off to a terrible start after the Orange cap Holder Jos Buttler was dismissed in the second over. Yashasvi Jaiswal held on to nerves maturely to lead the inning even after skipper Samson lost his wicket but fell cheaply off Prashant Solanki in the 15th over. R Ashwin promoted up the order and paid dividends in the big time. He stayed unbeaten 40 off 23 balls consisting of two fours and three maximums to help the team win the match with two balls remaining. Ashwin thumped his chest multiple times after hitting a low full toss from Matheesha Pathirana when six were needed off five balls.
After the match, Ashwin said he brought out the David Warner inside him. "I want to play my A-game for all franchises I play for. It's a mark of respect. Glad we're in the playoffs. (On celebrations) I brought the David Warner inside me."
"Dear Ashwin, is there anything in cricket you can't do? Master spinner, impact batsman, time to start bowling at 150 kph. You are a champion all-rounder," Mohammad Kaif tweeted.
Not only in this match, but Ashwin has also gathered 183 runs in 10 innings at an average of 30.50 runs and a phenomenal strike rate of 146.40, showcasing his all-rounder skills. This is by far the highest batting average in his IPL career. This includes his one half-century, fourteen fours, and nine sixes in this tournament.
"What a player! @ashwinravi99. Just gets cricket. Whether test cricket where he is a great or T20 where he is now a champion." tweeted Harsha Bhogle.
Wasim Jaffer appreciated Ashwin as an all-rounder, "Bowling in PP, middle & death. Batting @ 3, 5 & 8. @ashwinravi99 at @rajasthanroyals #RRvCSK #IPL2022.”
R Ashwin shines in the match against his old teammates of CSK.
R Ashwin burst into the cricketing picture while playing for CSK from 2008 to 2015. After that, he went to play for Kings XI Punjab and Delhi Capitals. However, after not being retained by the Capitals, the spinner expressed his wish to be back from where he started, i.e., CSK. But Rajasthan Royals got their hands on him in the mega-auctions. In all three former franchises, his role was limited to a spinner. And here is the time, from starting his journey as a spinner with CSK to putting in an all-rounder performance against CSK, he has come a long way. Ravichandran Ashwin's batting skills are being celebrated after seeing his performance.
Fans appreciated Ashwin's knock as a batter against CSK on Twitter:
A fan wrote, "CSK had promoted Deepak Chahar against Punjab under Ashwin's captaincy in 2018. Ashwin taking revenge. #IPL"
"Ashwin does all the YouTube videos for CSK matches only to study our bowlers like this. Unbelievable." wrote another fan.
A fan criticized CSK for choosing Jadeja over Ashwin, "Ash could have been CSKs captain, but they retained Jadeja over him.