MI vs CSK: Victory is three times sweeter for Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians are the two heavyweights of the IPL. Since the first edition with CSK having India’s captain as their icon player and MI having world’s most loved batsmen as theirs, both teams have competed fiercely. The two franchises have always had some of the big names of world cricket in their teams and both are owned by big industrial houses. Expectations have been high for them since the start of the IPL but Chennai Super Kings have fulfilled those expectations more often than their counterpart on the west coast. It was only last year that MI outperformed them in the IPL as well as Champions League T20. [caption id=“attachment_1548345” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  CSK celebrate after beating MI. BCCI[/caption] Last year’s final was a painful moment for all CSK fans. Mumbai Indians had not allowed CSK to win at Wankhede and now this final loss rubbed salt on the wound. Mumbai Indians are also the only team with a winning record against CSK in the league, having won 8 and lost 5. The two teams have had the most vocal and active fans on social media as well. When allegations of match-fixing surfaced last season, Super Kings fans were trolled on social media by fans of Mumbai Indians, who were on cloud nine after winning IPL 6 by defeating Super Kings in the final. The diatribe among both fans of both teams became the order of the day on social media. This turned the rivalry ugly between the two sets of fans. The rivalry is developing along the lines of Real Madrid - Barcelona or Manchester United - Liverpool. That’s why nothing could have satisfied Super Kings’ fans more this year than knocking Mumbai Indians out of the IPL. It made it sweeter that Super Kings won all three matches over Mumbai this season, including their first ever win at the Wankhede stadium. The 3-0 scoreline this season made the victory sweetest and reaffirmed the authority of CSK over IPL. There are two more matches to go to achieve the goal of winning IPL but certainly a little celebration over this victory would do no harm. With winning momentum and big-match experience, Super Kings have, every reason to believe they can go all the way but the biggest hurdle for them is Kings XI Punjab, which has triumphed over Super Kings twice with ease this season. The second Qualifier at Wankhede will test the temperament of Super Kings’ bowlers against the power-packed batting line up of KXIP. They can take inspiration from the fact that KXIP has been beaten once at the same venue this year. This will be battle of nerves and both captains are known to be cool under pressure but big match experience of Dhoni gives him edge and Super Kings will count on him to see them through to their fifth consecutive final.