IPL 2021 Playoffs, DC vs CSK (Qualifier 1): Records plentiful as Chennai seals final berth

Delhi Capitals was beaten by Chennai Super Kings as the latter sealed its place in the IPL 2021 final. There were quite a few top performers in the game, as we take a look.

It was a splendid performance by former champion Chennai Super Kings (CSK), as it surpassed Delhi Capitals (DC) by four wickets in Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 playoffs at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. There were a few record-breaking performances, as we analyse the same.

Rishabh Pant becomes the youngest
- Pant has become the youngest skipper in the IPL playoffs, at 24 years & six days, going past his DC teammate and former captain Shreyas Iyer 24 years & 155 days.
- Pant and Shimron Hetmyer contributed to an 83-run stand for the fifth wicket. It was the highest stand for the wicket in the playoffs to date.
- Also, Pant's 50 was the first for DC in the UAE leg of this IPL.

MS Dhoni records a couple
- Dhoni was leading in the playoffs for the 11th time in his career, while he became the second-oldest (40 years & 133 days) after Rahul Dravid (40 years & 95 days).
- Also, Dhoni hit the winning runs to place CSK in the final. As a result, he became the joint-most to stay unbeaten in a successful IPL run chase (25), along with Ravindra Jadeja.

Dwayne Bravo reaches a landmark
Bravo dismissed Hetmyer to claim his 550th T20 wicket, while it was his 166th wicket, the second-most with Amit Mishra.

CSK chases the highest
CSK chased down a target of 173, which is the highest in Dubai this season. It got past 166 by Punjab Kings (PBKS) against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

Match summary
Winning the toss, CSK elected to field, as DC posted an above-par total of 172/5, courtesy of Shaw and Rishabh Pant. However, CSK chased it down thrillingly, thanks to Ruturaj Gaikwad and Robin Uthappa, while Dhoni hit the winning runs.
Brief scores: DC 172/5 (Shaw- 60, Pant- 51*, Hetmyer- 37; Hazlewood- 2/29) lost to CSK 173/6 in 19.4 overs (Gaikwad- 70, Uthappa- 63; Curran- 3/29) by four wickets.