Ambati Rayudu played a crucial cameo in the IPL 2023 final which allowed Chennai Super Kings to defeat Gujarat Titans by 5 wickets. Former Indian batter Mohammad Kaif heaped praise Ambati Rayudu’s knock and named the six that he hit from the back foot as the shot of the tournament.
The star CSK batter had earlier announced that the IPL 2023 final would be his last game in the cash-rich league. Rayudu made sure to keep the momentum going in the all important game as Chennai Super Kings were chasing a massive target.
Mohammad Kaif compares Ambati Rayudu’s six to that of Virat Kohli’s against Pakistan, Calls it ‘Shot of The Tournament’
“That impactful knock from Ambati Rayudu was the game-changing moment. His innings was very crucial in the context of the game. The six he hit going on the back foot was the shot of the tournament for me,” Mohammad Kaif said while speaking on Star Sports’ Cricket Live.
“It was identical to that iconic six which Virat Kohli hit in the T20 World Cup against Pakistan in Melbourne last year. Rayudu looked emotional but full credit to him for ending his IPL career on such a high,” the former batter compared the shot with Virat Kohli’s six against Pakistan in the T20 World Cup.
The particular shot that Mohammad Kaif spoke about came in the 13th over of the CSK innings against GT pacer Mohit Sharma. Ambati Rayudu waited on the backfoot anticipating a slower delivery and flat-batted hit over the head of long-off for a massive six.
Gujarat Titans had posted a massive total of 214-4 courtesy of a brilliant knock by young batter Sai Sudharsan. He smashed 96 runs off just 47 deliveries including 8 fours and 6 maximums. Opening batters Shubman Gill and Wriddhiman Saha too played crucial knocks for the Gujarat Titans.
In response to Gujarat Titans’ huge total, CSK got off to a great start by opening pair of Devon Conway and Ruturaj Gaikwad. However, the MS Dhoni-led team needed the same aggression in the middle order as well and Ambati Rayudu did what his side needed the most.
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He came in to bat at a crucial moment and took on Gujarat Titans’ death specialist Mohit Sharma and kept the momentum going for CSK. Ravindra Jadeja smashed a couple of boundaries in the final over as CSK won the IPL 2023 final which was their 5th triumph in the cash-rich league.
