A Blockbuster Picture of MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli from IPL 2024 Opener, Courtesy CSK

The opening game of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) saw two heavyweights Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) clash at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday. One of the major takeaways of the match was the performance of CSK, under their new leader, Ruturaj Gaikwad. CSK’s newly appointed skipper replaced MS Dhoni. Despite the change in leadership, Dhoni had the spotlight on him for most of the game. During the season opener, Virat Kohli and Dhoni did not shy away from displaying mutual admiration for each other. The two would enjoy a unique moment in between the RCB batting innings, as the fans went wild watching the Indian players put aside the rivalry between the two franchises. The Dhoni-Kohli pair’s bond goes back a long way, and it was evident on Friday. Kohli was the vice-captain of the Indian cricket team with Dhoni leading the team. Then, Dhoni stepped down as captain in January 2017, with Kohli taking over.

In the early hours of Saturday morning, the official X (formerly Twitter) account of Chennai Super Kings shared a picture of Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni with the caption reading, “For the Mahirat Fandom! (All of us!)”.

CSK began their title defence with a comfortable six-wicket win over RCB. The Faf du Plessis-led side have not won an away game in Chennai since 2008. RCB skipper Faf du Plessis opted to bat first after winning the toss last night. The former South African captain got his team off to a flier, scoring 35 off just 23 balls before being dismissed by Mustafizur Rahman. The Bangladesh pacer registered impressive figures of 4/29. He picked up the wickets of Rajat Patidar, Du Plessis, Virat Kohli and Cameron Green.

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Anuj Rawat and Dinesh Karthik provided resistance and saved the ship from sinking, adding 95 runs for the sixth wicket and helping RCB post 173 on the board.

Debutant Rachin Ravindra, during the run chase, proved why he is one of the most talented youngsters during his 15-ball 37 burst at the start of the CSK innings. Later, Ajinkya Rahane and Kiwi all-rounder Daryl Mitchell produced vital contributions in the middle-order. Shivam Dube remained unbeaten on 34 and added 66 runs for the fifth wicket with Ravindra Jadeja to help CSK win by six wickets and eight balls to spare.