Last Update: May 29, 2023, 2:01 PM IST
The 2019 World Cup semi-final was MS Dhoni’s last match for India. (AFP photo)
Fans are drawing parallels between India’s 2019 World Cup semi-final defeat to New Zealand and the IPL 2023 final
The rain god visited Ahmedabad on Sunday, forcing the Indian Premier League (IPL) final between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings to be postponed and shifted to the reserve day.
As per the new schedule, the much-awaited face-off will happen again tonight at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Keeping aside on-field developments, as soon as the match was moved to Reserve Day, fans started speculating that this season would be Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s last In IPL.
And he made a reference to the 2019 World Cup semi-final between India and New Zealand which was Dhoni’s last appearance in the blue jersey.
Due to heavy rain in Manchester, the World Cup semi-final was halted and then resumed the next day.
Dhoni retired from international cricket after India’s 18-run defeat in the crucial match.
Ahead of the start of this year’s IPL, speculations about Dhoni’s retirement from IPL gained momentum considering the fact that the legendary captain will celebrate his 42nd birthday this July. But the captain of Chennai has not yet confirmed anything from his side.
“The last time the match was shifted to reserve day, Dhoni announced his retirement,” a fan tweeted while pulling the strings of the semi-finals of the 2019 World Cup.
Another fan found the coincidence difficult to digest and said that God may delay Dhoni’s retirement not only in Indian colors but also in yellow.
God also wants to delay Dhoni’s retirement. for India
WC Semi-Final 2019 – On Reserve Day.
for csk
Finals 2023 – Reserve Day??
— Anshu Singh (@singhanshu07) May 28, 2023
After the decision on reserve day was finalised, a cricket lover wrote on Twitter, “IPL 2023 final and reserve day for Dhoni’s retirement.”
It started raining much before the toss of the IPL final in Ahmedabad.
There was no change in the local situation till 11:02 pm when an announcement on the stadium’s giant screen read, “IPL Final Reserve Day, May 29 moved to 7:30 pm. Physical tickets for today’s game will be valid for tomorrow’s. Please keep the ticket intact and safe.
#Last Did #TATAIPL 29 May in 2023 – 7:30 PM IST has been shifted to reserve day at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. Physical tickets for today will be valid tomorrow. We request you to keep the ticket safe and intact. #CSKVGT pic.twitter.com/d3DrPVrIVD
– Indian Premier League (@IPL) May 28, 2023
Rain can play spoilsport on the reserve day as well. According to Weather.com’s forecast, there is a 16 percent chance of rain on Monday evening. However, the sky is expected to clear after 8:30 pm local time.
