Hat-trickster Chahal is still making batters look silly

MS Dhoni had just jumped out of his crease and launched a one-handed six off Yuzvendra Chahal over long-on in the 19th over. Ravindra Jadeja took the "catch" in front of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) dugout, with Chepauk going wild. They felt that CSK were onto something. Until Chahal stopped them in their tracks with his crafty legspin.

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He bagged four wickets in five balls, including a hat-trick, which precipitated a collapse that saw CSK lose their last five wickets for six runs in the space of seven balls. After Dhoni had hit that six off the first legal ball of the over, ESPNcricinfo's forecaster projected a total of 203. Chahal's strikes, however, limited CSK to 190, with four balls unused in their innings.

When Chahal came onto bowl that over, the odds were stacked against him. He had bowled just two overs until that point, with Sam Curran having dumped him out of the attack with a brace of fours and a six. The dew was setting in; eight members of the groundstaff had just gone out, dragging four ropes between them. Chahal also had to contend with just four men outside the circle, instead of five, because of slow over-rate.

CSK's spin basher Shivam Dube was at the crease. When the two teams had met in New Chandigarh in early April, Dube's presence kept Chahal away from the attack until his dismissal in the 16th over. Chahal ended up bowling just one over.

Cut to Chepauk. He beat all the odds and changed the game in just one over. There was pin-drop, deathly silence in the stands when Chahal completed his hat-trick and slipped into his meme-inspired signature pose.