Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar have exchanged match jerseys after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Sunday, May 15 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai where KKR sealed the deal. Notably, Shardul was part of the CSK squad from 2018 and 2021 but he returned to Chepauk on May 15, 2023, as a KKR player. Shardul picked up 55 wickets in 48 IPL matches for the CSK.
While Shardul wore Deepak’s Super Kings jersey, Chahar wore Thakur’s Knight Riders dress as well. Posting a video on his Instagram handle, CSK wrote, “Cherry x Dhool. Just like old times. #CSKvKKR #WhistlePodu #Yellove. The two pacers can be seen shaking hands and exchanging jerseys at the end of the game, with Shardul saying, “it is good to be back in CSK jersey.” In the video, Shardul can be also heard telling Deepak that jersey seedha nikalna tha na.
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However, after the game, MS Dhoni, the CSK captain said: “One of those days when you win the toss and bat first and the moment the first ball was bowled in the second innings, you realise it is a 180 wicket. Batting first I don’t think we could have got anywhere close to 180. I think the dew made a big difference. If you compare the first innings to the second innings, there was a lot more purchase for the spinners in the first innings and that’s what really got to us. (Can’t blame anyone for the loss) Yes, I think so. Whenever there is no certainty about dew that is when the decision (at the toss) becomes slightly tricky. And as I said, you win the toss and you bowl first and you realize there is no dew in the second innings, chasing 150 against their spinners could have been tough too. So we can’t really blame any batter or bowler for this loss. They tried their best, but the conditions had a big impact on the game.”
