Rain delay definitely gave CSK the advantage vs GT, says Tom Moody after MS Dhoni & Co. win IPL 2023 final

Former Australia cricketer and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) head coach Tom Moody feels the rain break helped Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in their thrilling five-wicket win over defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) in IPL 2023 final, which ended in the wee hours on Tuesday (May 30) in Ahmedabad. After opting to bowl first in the summit clash, MS Dhoni & Co. were in for a leather hunt as GT rode on Wriddhiman Saha’s 39-ball 54 and Sai Sudharsan’s classy 47-ball 96 to post 214/4. In reply, Chennai started the run-chase being 4 for no loss in three balls before a lengthy rain break halted proceedings for over two hours.

After play resumed, CSK got a revised target — 171 in 15 overs — which they chased down with quickfire knocks from Ruturaj Gaikwad (16-ball 26), Devon Conway’s 25-ball 47, Ajinkya Rahane’s 13-ball 27, Ambati Rayudu’s 9-ball 18. Shivam Dube’s 21-ball 32* and 6-ball 15 not out from Ravindra Jadeja. With 10 needed off the last two balls, Jadeja ended proceedings with a six and a four, off Mohit Sharma (3 for 36), as CSK lifted their fifth IPL trophy. Moody feels CSK got the advantage with the rain break and made full use of it.

‘Rain delay definitely gave CSK the advantage’

“That rain delay definitely gave CSK the advantage. Therefore, the toss, and batting second, played out in their favor. To me, the total they had to chase with a reduced number of overs was more favorable than the total that they actually would have had to chase if it was a full game,” said Moody.

After CSK’s win, Dhoni also opened up on his IPL future and said that there is a possibility for him to return for IPL 2024. At the post-match presentation, he said, “Circumstantially if you see, this is the best time to announce my retirement. But the amount of love and affection I have been shown wherever I have been this year, the easy thing would be for me to say “Thank you very much”, but the tough thing for me is to work hard for another 9 months and come back and play at least 1 more season of IPL. A lot depends on the body, I have 6-7 months to decide. It will be more like a gift from my side, it’s not easy for me but that’s a gift. The way they’ve shown their love and affection, I think that’s something I need to do for them.”