Ambati Rayudu was a man possessed when he clobbered the Mumbai Indians bowlers all over the ground in the exciting MI vs CSK clash. He smashed the second-fastest IPL half-century for CSK in the history of the IPL. Many batsmen have hit quick half-centuries in the tournament. Today we will take a look at the 5 fastest IPL half-centuries for Chennai Super Kings.
#1. Suresh Raina-16 balls (30 May 2014)
Suresh Raina is undoubtedly one of the most underrated batsmen in the world. The southpaw has won many matches for India, as well as the CSK. While he may have retired from international cricket, he still plays for the CSK.
It was the May of 2014 when CSK faced off against PBKS at the Wankhede Stadium. Suresh Raina showed no mercy on the Punjab bowlers as he smashed his way to a 50 in just 16 balls. Raina went on to score 87 runs in the match. He hit 12 sixes and six fours in his knock of 87 runs. Thus he tops the list of the fastest IPL half-centuries for CSK.
#2. Ambati Rayudu-20 balls (01 May 2021)
We talked a bit about this in the introduction of this article. Ambati Rayudu made it look easy as he smashed world-class bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, and Jimmy Neesham. Rayudu reached his half-century in just 20 balls. He piled on a lot more runs and managed to score 72 runs from just 27 balls. His incredible knock boosted CSK to a huge total of 218.
In the end, Mumbai proved to be too good for CSK, as the won on the last ball of the match. However regardless of the result, Rayudu’ star shined incrediblh brightly as he took the dreaded MI pace attack to work.
#3. MS Dhoni- 20 balls (23 May 2012)
Mahendra Singh Dhoni comes in at number 3. Dhoni is widely known as one of the best finishers in the world. His explosive ability and a cool mind are an asset any team would love to have. Captain Cool, as he is known popularly, has been a major part of the CSK ever since the beginning of the IPL.
He bats lower down the order, and this isn’t featured too regularly in the batting record books. However, he left his mark in the IPL, scoring the third fastest IPL 50 in the history of the tournament. The former Indian skipper did so in just 20 balls. He did so against arch-rivals Mumbai Indians at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. Dhoni hit 6 sixes and 2 fours in his knock of 51 runs.
#4. Sam Billings- 21 balls (10 April 2018)
Sam Billings is a talented wicketkeeper-batsman from England. He currently plays for the Delhi Capitals. Billings was a part of the playing XI when CSK faced off against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Chidambaram stadium. He did not fail to impress, getting past the 50-run mark in just 21 deliveries. Billings went on to score 56 runs, which consisted of 2 sixes and 5 fours. This is the fourth fastest 50 for CSK in the IPL.
#5. Matthew Hayden- 22 balls (23 April 2009)
Matthew Hayden is widely considered as one of the best Australian openers of all time. The talented batsman could punish the bowler for even small mistakes. He was a part of the Chennai outfit for about 3 years.
Hayden was playing for the CSK when they faced off against the Royal Challenger’s Bangalore at St George’s Park. He scored 65 runs in his innings. Out of these 65 runs, only 3 runs were scored running between the wickets. It was a sight to behold, as Hayden smashed an incredible 9 sixes and 2 fours in his innings.
