"I am thinking whether I am seeing the MS Dhoni of 2011 or 2023" - Aakash Chopra on CSK skipper's consecutive sixes against Mark Wood

Aakash Chopra has highlighted that MS Dhoni showed glimpses of his past destructive self during the Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) IPL 2023 win against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).

Dhoni smoked sixes off the first two deliveries he faced as the four-time champions set a 218-run target for LSG on Monday, April 3. Their bowlers then restricted KL Rahul and Co. to 205/7 to register a 12-run win.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra highlighted that it was a sweet homecoming for MS Dhoni, elaborating:

"MS Dhoni scored 12 runs and the victory margin in Chennai's win against Lucknow was 12 runs. CSK had come to Chennai after 1426 days - kya baat hai Thala. This love story is written in heaven. I am thinking whether I am seeing the MS Dhoni of 2011 or 2023."

The former Indian opener pointed out that the CSK skipper played an uncharacteristic slash over third man for a six against the express pace of Mark Wood, stating:

"Mark Wood, probably the fastest bowler in the world right now, was in front of MS Dhoni. The first ball was outside the off-stump, he played a cut and it went for a six over third man. I was like - Wow."

Chopra added that MS Dhoni's second six was an even tougher shot to play, explaining:

"Second ball, short ball, outside off-stump, now this is a tough shot to play and he hit that for another six. They were two unbelievable shots. He rewound the clock and how. Just think about it that you come to play your first match here after 1426 days and you hit two sixes in the three balls you face from the world's fastest bowler."

Dhoni tried to hit another maximum off the third ball he faced and was caught by Ravi Bishnoi at deep point. However, he had done enough by then to warm the cockles of his fans' hearts.

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"He is batting on a different planet" - Aakash Chopra on Ruturaj Gaikwad's consistent performances for CSK

Ruturaj Gaikwad played a classy knock against LSG. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra also had words of praise for Ruturaj Gaikwad for giving CSK a flying start in Devon Conway's company, saying:

"How well is Ruturaj batting. He is batting on a different planet. We felt great when he started well by scoring 90-odd in the first match. The Chennai pitch is generally slow, which was not the case. Lucknow won the toss and opted to bowl first, and Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway destroyed them."

Gaikwad (57 off 31) and Conway (47 off 29) added 110 runs for the first wicket in just nine overs. Although both openers were dismissed in back-to-back overs, they laid an excellent platform for the other batters to take their side to a massive total.