16 May,2026 05:07 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Michael Hussey (Pic: File Pic)
In the IPL 2026 match against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Chennai Super Kings (CSK) suffered a loss by seven wickets at the Ekana Cricket Stadium B Ground in Lucknow.
After the loss, CSK's batting coach, Michael Hussey, said that every game is going to be a final for the Super Kings.
"Well, I mean, I actually love this time of the tournament because it's like every game is like a final, you know, and we're in that situation now," he said.
"We're going to have to win our last two matches. I mean, I haven't studied the table that closely. Yeah, there's a lot of teams fighting out for that probably the last couple of spots in the top-four," added Hussey.
Ruturaj Gaikwad-led men will now take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on May 18 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Later, they will lock horns with Gujarat Titans (GT) on May 21 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Despite the defeat, the batting coach is still optimistic about CSK's chances of making it to the playoff of the IPL 2026.
"This is where (stage of the tournament) the pressure is really on everyone, not just us, but all the other teams as well. And you can see some crazy things happen. So we're still (in with) a chance...we still have belief that we can make it through," he said during the post-match press conference.
During the match against Lucknow, Kartik Sharma was the highest scorer for Chennai in the first innings of the match. Facing 42 balls, he smashed 71 runs laced with six boundaries and five maximums. Later, burly all-rounder Shivam Dube delivered an unbeaten knock of 32 runs in 16 balls, including three boundaries and two maximums. With this, they posted a total of 187 runs for the loss of five wickets in 20 overs.
In the second essay of the game, LSG's Mitchell Marsh smashed 90 runs off 38 balls, with the help of nine boundaries and seven maximums. Impact Player, Josh Inglis, also scored 36 runs in 32 balls, including three boundaries and a maximum.
Nicholas Pooran accumulated an unbeaten 32 runs in 17 balls. His knock included a boundary and four maximums. With this, the hosts scored 188 runs for the loss of three wickets in 16.4 overs.
Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), MS Dhoni (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Dewald Brevis, Ayush Mhatre, Kartik Sharma, Sarfaraz Khan, Urvil Patel, Anshul Kamboj, Jamie Overton, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Prashant Veer, Matthew Short, Aman Khan, Zak Foulkes, Shivam Dube, Khaleel Ahmed, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Nathan Ellis, Shreyas Gopal, Gurjapneet Singh, Akeal Hosein, Matt Henry, Rahul Chahar.
(With PTI Inputs)
