IPL: Decoding Sunil Narine's dominance versus MS Dhoni
What's the story
The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will take on the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 57th match of IPL 2025 at Kolkata's Eden Gardens on May 7. KKR's playoff hopes depend on this match, whereas CSK has already been knocked out of the race. Meanwhile, the battle between Sunil Narine and MS Dhoni could headline this contest. Here we decode their battles in the past.
Previous encounter
Narine's dominance versus Dhoni
Earlier this season, KKR had decimated CSK, restricting them to their lowest-ever score at Chepauk (103/9 in 20 overs). Narine led the show for KKR with figures worth 3/13 from four overs. Dhoni was one of his victims in the game as the CSK star could only manage a solitary run off four balls. Attempting to play a shot through the on-side, he was trapped LBW. This was the second instance of Narine trapping Dhoni in IPL.
Rivalry
Three dismissals in T20 cricket
As per ESPNcricinfo, Dhoni has only scored 48 runs off 92 balls against Narine with a strike rate of 52.17, getting out thrice across 19 meetings. Notably, the CSK star has managed to hit Narine for just a couple of fours. Two of these dismissals have taken place across 16 IPL meetings. Notably, Narine trapped Dhoni with the only delivery he bowled to him in the aforementioned Chepauk game.
DYK
Most wickets by a spinner against CSK
Narine's 3/13 against CSK earlier this season took him to 26 wickets from 21 matches against the Super Kings in the IPL. He averages 19.65 with his economy rate being 6.28. Narine is now the second-highest wicket-taker versus CSK. Former Mumbai Indians pacer Lasith Malinga leads the show with 31 scalps at 19.03. Harbhajan Singh, who managed 24 scalps from 21 matches at 21.04, trails Narine among spinners.
Campaign
Decoding their season in stats
In IPL 2025, Narine has managed 10 wickets across as many games at a decent economy of 7.59. He has gone wicket-less in three of his last four outings. Meanwhile, CSK's designated finisher Dhoni has scored 163 runs at a decent strike rate of 148.18. However, his strike rate comes down to a paltry 109.09 against spinners.