OTD | MS Dhoni became the first player to feature in 200 matches in IPL

MS Dhoni who was the former Indian captain stood out as arguably the finest leader in the Indian Premier League (IPL). In addition to his outstanding captaincy, Dhoni has illuminated the T20 Championship with his extraordinary finishing prowess and wicket-keeping skills. In the 2020 edition, the Chennai Super Kings skipper achieved the distinction of being the first player to participate in an impressive 100 IPL matches.

The IPL 2020 didn’t unfold as expected for the Super Kings, marking their poorest performance in the tournament’s history. It was the first instance where the team fell short of making it to the playoffs. Nevertheless, it was also a year marked by personal milestones for Dhoni.

On October 19, 2020, during the clash between Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, Dhoni reached the significant milestone of featuring in his 100th IPL game.

The CSK captain couldn’t make his 200th appearance in the T20 extravaganza a memorable one, as his team ended up on the losing side against the Royals by seven wickets. Setting the target in the match, CSK concluded with just 125 runs in their 20 overs. Dhoni also struggled to make a significant contribution, losing his wicket to a run-out after scoring 28 runs off 28 deliveries.

Rajasthan effortlessly pursued the target in 17.3 overs, thanks to Jos Buttler. The wicketkeeper-batsman hammered 70 runs off a mere 48 balls to guide his team to victory in a pivotal match.

Dhoni also had a lustrous IPL career, the batter has been associated with only two franchises, namely Chennai Super Kings and Rising Pune Supergiants.  Not in the IPL but also in the Champions League the prolific batter has shown his class with bat as well as with his captaincy skills. During his tenure with the Super Kings, the Ranchi-born cricketer has led the team to victory four times in 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021. The 40-year-old has accumulated 5082 runs in 250 IPL matches at an average of 38.7 and a strike rate of 135.9.

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