IPL 2018, Qualifier 1: Faf Du Plessis Thanks Fans After Match-Winning Knock For Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) stormed into the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 final for a record seventh time courtesy of a stellar unbeaten 67 by Faf du Plessis. Chennai edged SunRisers Hyderabad by 2 wickets in a nervy last-over thrilling encounter at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday. Du Plessis remained unbeaten and witnessed his fellow batsmen crumble like a pack of cards. He stood like a rock throughout and hit a fine half-century to take CSK to the final. At one stage, Chennai Super Kings were reeling at 62/6 in 12.3 overs but Du Plessis had other plans. He hit 4 sixes and 5 fours ensuring CSK got over the line. His knock received accolades from all quarters and Du Plessis posted a message thanking everyone on his official Twitter account. "Thanx so much to everyone for the kind messages... Can't believe that we won that game last night. Special to be there at the end. Looking forward to the final on Sunday," he wrote.

Thanx so much to everyone for the kind messages.. Can't believe that we won that game last night. Special to be there at the end. Looking forward to the final on Sunday pic.twitter.com/uAkXJqqLy7

— Faf Du Plessis (@faf1307) May 23, 2018

SRH posted 139/7 after being put into bat by Chennai skipper MS Dhoni. A disciplined bowling by Chennai restricted the table-toppers SRH to a modest total. Deepak Chahar (1/31), Lungi Ngidi (1/20), Dwayne Bravo (2/25) and Ravindra Jadeja (1/13) performed well for Chennai. Carlos Brathwaite (43*) took Shardul Thakur (1/50) to the cleaners in the final overs of the SRH innings.

Chasing a 140-run target, Chennai didn't get the start they'd had liked for. They kept losing wickets at regular intervals. However, Du Plessis had other plans along with Shardul Thakur. Thakur's 5-ball 15 coupled with Du Plessis' knock gave CSK the victory they needed.