Mahendra Singh Dhoni provided the flourish at the end as Chennai Super Kings outclassed Lucknow Super Giants by five wickets to break their run of losses in the IPL 2025 match in Lucknow on Monday.

The iconic Dhoni played a nice little cameo alongside Shivam Dube to guide CSK to a much-needed victory as the five-time champions bounced back after a horror start.

Captain Dhoni played the finisher’s role to perfection, slamming 26 not out off 11 balls, hitting four fours and a six, while Dube stroked an unbeaten 43 not out off 37 balls, with three fours and two sixes.

The duo  shared a match-winning stand of 57 runs for the sixth wicket to chase down a target of 167 with three balls to spare.

This was after LSG skipper Rishabh Pant returned to form with a half-century to guide his side to 166 for seven.

Pant (63 off 49 balls) struggled initially but grew in confidence as the innings progressed and together with Abdul Samad (20) shared 53 runs for the fifth wicket off 33 balls.

Shaik Rasheed (27 off 19) and Rachin Ravindra (37 off 22) got CSK’s chase off to a flier with a brilliant 29-ball 52-run opening stand.

While Ravindra showed his class on the off side, Rasheed was elegant on the leg side, finding the fence at will to bring up CSK’s fifty in the fifth over.

Debutant Rasheed’s entertaining knock came to an end when he skied a Avesh Khan short ball while trying to hoick it on the leg side.

Aiden Markram then had Ravindra trapped in front of the wicket while Rahul Tripathi failed to cash in on a reprieve as he edged a Ravi Bishnoi delivery back to the leg-spinner.

Bishnoi bowled superbly, and his efforts yielded result as he dismissed Ravindra Jadeja with a flighted delivery, and Markram took a fine catch at long on.

With CSK needing 56 off 30, in came Dhoni and he smashed Avesh through the off side for a four, and deliberately nicked the next ball past the keeper to the third man fence to bring down the equation to 44 of 24 balls.

It was vintage Dhoni on display as he swung his bat to hit a one-handed six off Shardul Thakur and then got a boundary off Avesh.

Both Dhoni and Dube used the pace of LSG bowlers to perfection to take CSK home and give their fans some relief.

Earlier, coming off five successive losses, CSK made a dream start after electing to bowl.  

Left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed (1/38) struck the first blow in the opening over when he dismissed Markram with Rahul Tripathi taking a brilliant diving catch after sprinting backwards.

Two overs later, Anshul Kamboj removed the dangerous Nicholas Pooran leg before wicket.

Mitchell Marsh, returning to the side after sitting out of the last match due to personal reasons, took the attack to the opposition and smashed Khaleel for a four and six in consecutive balls.

Pant, who has struggled in the tournament so far, came out with intent and looked to get back to form with some unorthodox but confident hitting, which included a reverse scoop six off a length delivery from Jamie Overton.

Veteran Ravindra Jadeja (2/34) went for 10 runs in his first over but came back strongly in his next over to disturb the timbers of Marsh.

Young Ayush Badoni (22 off 17) meant business and played his shots from the onset. He hit Overton for two huge consecutive sixes — one over cover and the next over fine leg to take LSG to 95 for three after 12 overs.

Pant welcomed Matheesha Pathrina (2/45) with an exquisite cover drive to the boundary.

After surviving two chances — first when he was caught off a no ball and then a close LBW call off Jadeja in the 14th over — Badoni got out when the left-arm spinner foxed him completely and Dhoni did the rest behind the stumps.

Pant struggled against CSK spinners, especially Noor Ahmad, who returned brilliant figures of 4-0-13-0.

But with pace back into the attack in the form of Pathirana in the 18th over, Pant took his chances as he smashed the Sri Lankan for two sixes — the second one a one-handed pull over square-leg to bring up his fifty.

Pant and Samad were going great guns before Dhoni’s brilliance ensured the dismissals of both the set batters.

Dhoni first hit the non-striker’s end with a direct throw to dismiss Samad and then in the next ball took a fine high catch to end Pant’s stay in the middle.

Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya was a relieved man after his team pulled off a win from under Delhi Capitals’ feet in New Delhi on Sunday.

It took some superb fielding to get MI over the line but not before Karn Sharma’s magic spell.

And Hardik credited ‘impact sub’ Karn Sharma for showing a lot of heart to fashion Mumbai Indians’ 12-run win over DC in New Delhi on Sunday, a result that helped the visitors get their IPL campaign back on track.

DC were cruising at 119 for one just after the halfway stage but were eventually bowled out for 193 in 19 overs, with spinner Karn playing a pivotal role by taking three wickets for 36 runs.

It was Rohit Sharma who suggested to coach Mahela Jayawardene to bring Karn into the attack and also requested a ball change after the 11th over.

“Absolutely. Winning is always special. Especially in games like this. You have to keep fighting and it means a lot,” said Pandya at the post-match presentation when asked if he felt relieved after MI secured only their second win of the season.

“(Karn was) Fantastic. Coming in and bowling the way he bowled, showed a lot of heart, especially at a small ground like that.”

Karun Nair’s whirlwind 89 went in vain, and Pandya admitted the knock took them by surprise.

“We were running out of options regarding what to bowl at him. The way he took on our bowlers, took his chances, and the way he executed — it shows the hard work he has put in. I think he took us by surprise.”

DC batters suffered a dramatic collapse that included three successive run outs, ending their chase at 193.

“I always believe fielding is something that can change the game upside down. We were switched on, didn’t give up, and they got the chances and converted.”

Sent in to bat, Tilak Varma smashed a 33-ball 59 to power Mumbai Indians to 205 for 5.

Ryan Rickelton (41 off 25), Suryakumar Yadav (40 off 28), and Naman Dhir (38 off 17) also made vital contributions.

Speaking about MI’s batting approach, Pandya said it depends on the situation.

“Amazing. It’s always going to depend on the situation. The more the in-form players try to face the balls and take responsibility.

“Obviously, dew played a factor later. Just making sure the game is not over till it’s over. Keep fighting — that was the chatter in the group and my message to the boys. Wins like this change the momentum and bring everything back.”

Abhishek Sharma returned to form with a breathtaking 141 off 55 balls, overshadowing Shreyas Iyer’s 82, as Sunrisers Hyderabad scripted the second-highest run chase in IPL history to return to winning ways with a comprehensive eight-wicket win over Punjab Kings in a high-scoring encounter here on Saturday.

Opting to bat, PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer smashed a blistering 82 off 36 balls, laced with six sixes and as many fours, powering his side to a mammoth 245 for six, despite a four-wicket haul by Harshal Patel (4/42).

However, it was Abhishek Sharma, who had been struggling for form this season, whole stole the show with a sensational display of clean hitting. 

The southpaw, who was dropped twice, hammered 10 sixes and 14 fours, recording the highest individual score by an Indian in the history of IPL. SRH, languishing at the bottom of the table, chased down the target scoring 247 in just 18.3 overs, snapping a four-game losing streak.

Lockie Ferguson’s hamstring injury after bowling just two balls hampered Punjab Kings as they were left with a bowler short.

If Abhishek was the chief aggressor, smashing his way to an entertaining fifty in just 19 balls, AustralianTravis Head provided solid support, blasting three sixes and nine fours in a fluent 66 off 37 balls. The duo put on a record 171-run opening stand, making a mockery of the daunting chase.

The 24-year-old from Punjab dismantled the PBKS bowling attack with brute force. Marco Jansen was taken for four boundaries in the second over, and Yash Thakur was clobbered for two sixes and a four as SRH stormed to 60 in just four overs.

Part-time spinner Glenn Maxwell was welcomed with a six over extra cover and a four, but the real damage was felt by Yuzvendra Chahal, who dropped Abhishek off his own bowling and was later dispatched into the stands at midwicket.

Having played second fiddle early on, Head shifted gears in the ninth over, smashing Maxwell for back-to-back sixes. With Sunrisers in full flow, PBKS skipper Iyer used seven bowlers within the first nine overs, but none could make a breakthrough — partly due to some sloppy fielding.

Abhishek exploded again in the 10th over, carting Jansen for two sixes and two fours as SRH raced to 143 for no loss in 10 overs at the halfway mark.

Chahal finally broke the partnership in the 13th over, with Head holing out to long-on. Abhishek soon reached his maiden IPL century in 40 balls and celebrated by pulling out a piece of white paper from his pocket.

Needing 60 off the last six overs, Abhishek continued the carnage with two sixes and a four off Chahal, bringing up SRH’s 200 in the 15th over.

Thakur was smashed for another six and four before Arshdeep Singh finally ended Abhishek’s dream innings in the 17th over. But it was too little, too late, as Heinrich Klaasen (21) and Ishan Kishan (9) finished the chase comfortably.

Earlier, openers Priyansh Arya (36) and Prabhsimran Singh (42) provided a blazing 66-run start, but it was skipper Shreyas Iyer who anchored the innings with a whirlwind 82 off 36 balls, hitting six sixes and as many fours. He shared a 73-run stand off 40 balls with Nehal Wadhera (22).

Marcus Stoinis provided the final flourish, hammering Mohammed Shami (0/75) for four consecutive sixes in the last over as Punjab Kings posted a daunting total.

On a belter of a pitch, the PBKS openers came out all guns blazing, powering their side to a commanding 89/1 in the Powerplay.

Prabhsimran set the tone by hitting Mohammed Shami (0/75) for three boundaries, before Priyansh tore into Pat Cummins (0/40) with a six and two fours. The left-hander then smashed Shami for two successive sixes and a four, while Prabhsimran flicked another delivery for a maximum as Punjab raced to 50 in just three overs.

Harshal Patel (4/42) eventually broke the opening stand, outfoxing Priyansh with a slower delivery that was mistimed to Nitish Reddy.

Harshal could have had Prabhsimran too, but Abhishek Sharma dropped a difficult chance. The Kings ended the Powerplay on a high, with Iyer finishing it in style with a six.

SRH finally got some relief when Sri Lankan pacer Eshan Malinga (2/45), making his IPL debut, dismissed Prabhsimran in the next over after the opener slapped a slower ball straight to Cummins.

However, Malinga was taken apart in his second over, with Iyer and Wadhera hitting him for a six each.

Leg-spinner Zeeshan Ansari, who bowled two tight overs without conceding a boundary, was then launched for two sixes and a reverse-hit four by Iyer over long-off, showcasing the PBKS skipper’s form and flair.

Iyer completed his half-century with a sliced boundary off Shami, while Wadhera kept the scoreboard ticking with a fine-leg swipe.

PBKS lost two quick wickets as Malinga produced a yorker to dismiss Wadhera, and Harshal Patel trapped Shashank Singh (2) LBW after a successful DRS review, reducing the visitors to 168/4 in the 15th over.

Unfazed, Iyer continued the carnage, smashing Ansari over extra cover and punishing Malinga with three successive boundaries as PBKS crossed the 200-run mark in the 17th over.

Harshal came back strongly in the 18th over, removing Glenn Maxwell and Iyer within three balls to peg Punjab back.

Stoinis provided the final flourish, hammering a hapless Shami for four consecutive sixes in the last four balls of the innings, as PBKS finished with a towering total.