The highly anticipated clash between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Delhi Capitals (DC) in IPL 2024 is scheduled for Sunday, March 31 at the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Visakhapatnam. As the teams gear up for battle, contrasting predictions from former Australian teammates turned coaches, Michael Hussey and Ricky Ponting, add spice to the anticipation.
Before IPL 2024 commenced, MS Dhoni relinquished CSK’s captaincy to Ruturaj Gaikwad. Under Gaikwad’s leadership, CSK has enjoyed a strong start, securing victories in both their opening matches. Despite not having faced a delivery yet this season, Dhoni’s spectacular catch against Gujarat Titans grabbed headlines.
In anticipation of the forthcoming match, CSK’s batting coach Michael Hussey envisaged Dhoni clinching victory with his trademark six. “My prediction for the last over of the match is that MS Dhoni will be batting. The crowd will be roaring and MS Dhoni will hit a six to finish the match,” Michael Hussey declared in a video released by IPL’s official social media page.
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In contrast, DC’s head coach Ricky Ponting expressed confidence in skipper Rishabh Pant’s ability to lead the team to victory.
“What would I like to see? I would like to see Rishabh Pant on strike in the last over, Delhi needing 12 to win, and Rishabh hitting a boundary off the last ball to secure victory for Delhi. I mean, that’d be the story that a lot of people would like to see. That’s the story that the DC fans would like to see. And I’m sure there’s the opposite story for the CSK fans,” Ricky Ponting remarked.
While CSK arrives with the momentum of two consecutive home wins, DC seeks their first victory of the season after suffering two consecutive defeats. Hussey emphasized CSK’s determination to deliver, while Ponting acknowledged the significance of the match for DC.
“They’re going to be desperate. They’re going to be looking to play a great match. We all start on zero and try to put in another good performance against Delhi. Yeah, but I think if we can just focus well on our game and try to execute our skills as best we can, then hopefully it gives us a good chance to get the result we’re after,” Michael Hussey noted.
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Discussing the challenge of facing CSK, Ponting highlighted the importance of the match for DC. “You don’t want to lose any games, let alone lose two in a row at the start of the tournament. So, we understand the importance of this game. CSK is a very good team. They’ve won their first couple of games. They won the championship last year, so I think for us right now, the bigger the challenge is probably the better for us,” Ricky Ponting concluded.
