3 times when the winner of the opening match won the IPL trophy

The Indian Premier League is a lengthy tournament where any team's chances do not get jolted by early defeats. In IPL, every team gets enough chances to iron out their flaws and get to the winning ways. But, in any sport, the winning momentum is one thing that cannot be sidelined.

Though the early defeats are not bothering, the early winning momentum is very much fruitful. Any team, with early wins on their side, can do experiments with its squad before finalizing the best playing eleven to take to the field in the knockout matches.

In the eleven year history of the IPL, the team that won the opening match of the season, went on to win the title thrice. Let's have a look at those three instances:

#1. Chennai Super Kings, IPL 2011

It was the second consecutive title for CSK.

In the opening match of the 2011 season, Chennai Super Kings faced Kolkata Knight Riders at Chennai, and defeated the visitors by 2 runs in a thrilling contest, as Tim Southee defended nine runs in the last over. Going ahead in the tournament, Chennai Super Kings kept flourishing, especially at home, as they became the first team to win all home matches in IPL.

After the league stage, Chennai finished at the second position in the points table, behind Royal Challengers Bangalore. CSK defeated RCB in the first qualifier and met them again in the final after RCB defeated Mumbai Indians in the second qualifier.

In the final, CSK was all over RCB as they won the match by a big margin of 58 runs. Chasing a daunting total of 205, RCB could never get going and fell short by a considerable margin. Murali Vijay was the man of the match on the back of his dazzling 95 off 52 balls.

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#2 Kolkata Knight Riders, IPL 2014

KKR lifted the trophy for the second time.

The earlier part of the 2014 season was played in the UAE due to the general elections in India. The Gambhir-led Kolkata Knight Riders were up against the Rohit-led Mumbai Indians in the opening match at Abu Dhabi. Batting first, KKR scored 163/5 as Jaques Kallis and Manish Pandey contributed 72 & 64 respectively. Chasing the target, Mumbai Indians could not sustain against Sunil Narine as the West Indian spinner subdued them with a stunning spell 4-0-20-4. KKR won the match by 41 runs to start the tournament on a winning note.

After the first match, KKR looked to drop the rhythm as they could only win one out of their next six matches. But KKR redeemed themselves and then started a dream run for Kolkata-based franchise as they won seven matches on the trot. The unbelievable effort from KKR helped them gaining the second spot in the points table after the completion of the league stage.

KKR defeated Kings XI Punjab in the first qualifier to seal the berth in the final and faced them again for the title, as Kings XI Punjab got the better of Chennai Super Kings in the second qualifier. In the clash for the title, Kolkata Knight Riders held their nerves to go past KXIP in the very last over. On the virtue of a sensational 94 off 50 balls, Manish Pandey bagged the man of the match award.

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#3 Chennai Super Kings, IPL 2018

Shane Watson took CSK home with a dazzling century.

Making a comeback to the IPL after completing a suspension of two years, Chennai Super Kings provided the utmost exhilaration to their fans as the Dhoni-led experienced side cantered to the third ever IPL title.

CSK locked horns with Mumbai Indians in the opening match of the 2018 season. In what had almost gone in the favor of Mumbai Indians, Dwayne Bravo's 30-ball 64 pulled off an improbable win for CSK.

In the league-stage, CSK won nine games out of 14 and finished the table in the second position. The first qualifier was played between CSK and SRH where CSK was able to put a foot ahead in a thrilling encounter at the Wankhede Stadium. Both teams met in the final again as SRH overcame KKR in the second qualifier. The final proved to be a lopsided affair as Shane Watson's 57-ball 117 bamboozled SRH and CSK lifted the coveted trophy for the third time.

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