IPL 2023 Final: Chennai Super Kings crowned IPL champions for 5th time after thrilling win over Gujarat Titans

IPL 2023 Final, CSK vs GT: Chennai Super Kings became the second team after Mumbai Indians to win 5 IPL titles after Ravindra Jadeja starred in a thrilling final against Gujarat Titans. He hit a six and four off the last two balls to script history for CSK.

     Chennai Super Kings won their 5th IPL crown       after beating Gujarat Titans in a thrilling final 

In Short Chennai Super Kings won their fifth IPL title after defeating Gujarat Titans in the final CSK equaled Mumbai Indians' record with their fifth IPL crown CSK chased down 171 off 15 overs in a rain-hit final against GT.  Chennai Super Kings won a record-equaling fifth IPL title when Ravindra Jadeja hit the last two balls for 6 and 4 in a nail-biting final against Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in the early hours of Tuesday. The final of the 2023 Indian Premier League was truncated by rain but CSK and GT made it a title clash to remember.

CSK needed 13 runs off the final over of what is arguably the greatest IPL season. Mohit Sharma, who was sensational for the Titans throughout the season, rocked the Super Kings chase with the wickets of Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni but Ravindra Jadeja stayed calm and hit two of the most important shots in CSK's history to give them their fifth IPL title.

Chennai Super Kings have now equaled Mumbai Indians' record for five IPL titles. MS Dhoni who was leading in his 10th IPL final, has also drawn level with Rohit Sharma - both men now have five IPL titles as captain.

Gujarat Titans were so close to becoming the first team in IPL history to win back-to-back titles in their first two seasons but that was not to be. The Titans had finished on top of the points table for the second successive year and made it to the final after defeating MI in Qualifier 2.

The final was a re-run of the IPL 2023 season opener. GT had defeated CSK in Ahmedabad on March 31 and then lost to them in Qualifier 1. It was a stunning turnaround for CSK who had finished 9th in the points table in 2022.

Chennai Super Kings had won their first IPL title in 2010 and then defended it in 2011. They were suspended for two years in 2016 and 2017 and came back to win their third title in 2018. They had a horror run in 2020 but bounced back with their fourth title in 2021. And after forgettable season in 2022, the Super Kings created history in 2023 with their fifth IPL crown.

RESERVE DAY FINAL

The final was scheduled to start on Sunday but rain washed out play on May 28 without a ball being bowled. The match started on time on the Reserve Day and all seemed to go well until rain stopped play just three balls into the CSK innings. And that would be the start of a long wait until a revised target was worked out.

The umpires first inspected the pitch at 10.45 PM but the GT captain Hardik Pandya and coach Ashish Nehra did not seem happy with the conditions. There was another inspection at 11.30 PM and the officials were then able to confirm a resumption time with a stiff target for CSK.

The match resumed at 12.10 AM after a delay of 2 hours and 20 minutes with a revised target of 171 runs in 15 overs for Chennai Super Kings.