IPL 2023: KKR beat CSK at Chepauk after 11 years 

Kolkata Knight Riders beat Chennai Super Kings in match number 61 of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. The Knight Riders successfully chased down 145, with Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh getting them home. The duo drove KKR to victory after they were reduced to 33/3. Notably, KKR have claimed their first win at Chepauk after 11 years.

CSK had a brisk start after MS Dhoni elected to bat. However, the KKR spinners choked the Yellow Army in the middle overs. Shivam Dube slammed a 34-ball 48* as CSK reached 144/6 in 20 overs. No other batter scored in excess of 30 runs. Deepak Chahar took three quick wickets for CSK, but Rana and Rinku shared a 99-run stand to power KKR.

KKR lost Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, and Jason Roy for just 33 runs in the Powerplay. Rana and Rinku joined forces thereafter and stitched a valuable partnership. The duo negotiated the CSK spinners in the middle phase. Although Rinku departed for a 43-ball 54, it was too late for CSK. Rana led from the front with an unbeaten 57 off 44 balls.

CSK pace spearhead Chahar picked up a crucial three-wicket haul to strengthen the defense. Chahar cashed in during the Powerplay, taking all three wickets in this phase. He finished with figures worth 3/27 in three overs. Chahar raced to 65 wickets for CSK in the IPL. Earlier this season, the right-arm seamer made a comeback after recovering from a long-standing injury.

The KKR spinners were all over the Yellow Army in the middle overs (7-16). Varun Chakravarthy dismissed Ajinkya Rahane in the first over after the Powerplay. While CSK were at bay, Devon Conway departed in the 10th over. Shardul Thakur provided KKR with this crucial breakthrough. Sunil Narine then dismissed Ambati Rayudu and Moeen Ali in one over. CSK were 99/5 after 16 overs.

Narine, who is undergoing a rough patch, bowled brilliantly against CSK. He took two wickets for just 15 runs in four overs. The KKR spinner has raced to nine wickets in IPL 2023. The tally includes an economy of 8.06.

Once again, budding batter Shivam Dube bolstered CSK's middle order. Although the left-handed batter couldn't strike consistently, he held one end. Dube smashed an unbeaten 48 off 34 balls, a knock laced with 1 four and 3 sixes. He also shared a 68-run stand with Ravindra Jadeja (20). Dube has now raced to 360 runs in IPL 2023 at 40.00.

The ongoing IPL season has seen the resurgence of Dube. As of now, he is one of only three batters with 30 or more sixes in the season. Notably, Dube has the joint-most sixes against spin (19) this season, with Sanju Samson.

As stated, KKR have claimed their first win against CSK at Chepauk in over 11 years. Their last win at this venue came in 2012 when they defeated CSK to win the final under Gautam Gambhir.