Lucknow Super Giants 180 for 2 (Rahul 82, de Kock 54, Pooran 23*, Pathirana 1-29) beat Chennai Super Kings 176 for 6 (Jadeja 57*, Rahane 36, Moeen 30, Dhoni 28*, Krunal 2-16) by eight wickets

Rahul and de Kock set things up

Rahul often plays such strokes in T20s but it was the frequency with which he was hitting them on the night that was different. After collecting 12 off Deepak Chahar's second over - the third of the innings - that included a six over midwicket, he drilled Mustafizur Rahman back in the next over. And when de Kock and Rahul combined for 6, 4 and 6 across the fifth and sixth overs to take them to 54 in the powerplay, it was fairly evident that LSG were in pole position to get home comfortably.

LSG were helped further when de Kock miscued Jadeja in the ninth over but Pathirana shelled the chance at short third. De Kock made CSK pay in Jadeja's next over with a boundary on the leg side before Rahul inflicted more pain with back-to-back fours, which took him past fifty.

With 74 to get from 54, the two slowed down briefly before de Kock also got to his fifty. He fell for 54, caught by Dhoni trying to ramp a Mustafizur Rahman slower ball.

But Pooran came out with the aim of hitting boundaries and finished the game off with his third four that sealed the chase with six balls to spare.

Jadeja walks out at No. 4

CSK are known to pull rabbits out of the hat from time to time, and the latest was to send out Jadeja at No. 4.

Soon after they were put in, they had lost Rachin Ravindra for a golden duck and, three overs later, Ruturaj Gaikwad edged a Yash Thakur outswinger behind.

Losing two wickets in the powerplay, perhaps, made CSK save Shivam Dube for later and send out Jadeja, and he played a key hand in CSK getting to a competitive score.

CSK slip in the middle overs

Dube walked out at No. 5, but it was Jadeja who collected boundaries in consecutive overs by hitting with the spin of Krunal and Ravi Bishnoi.

Jadeja, however, did not get the company of CSK's big hitters for long. Dube first miscued a Marcus Stoinis short ball, bowled at 125.4kph, to be taken by Rahul, and Sameer Rizvi, soon after, danced down the pitch to Krunal but couldn't get close to the ball and was stumped. CSK were suddenly 93 for 5 after 13 overs.

The LSG bowlers stifled Moeen Ali and Jadeja - they went 34 balls without a boundary. Jadeja broke the drought in the 16th over, and reached his fifty in the 17th with a six off Mohsin Khan that Deepak Hooda should have taken but only managed to tip over.

The Moeen and Dhoni show

Moeen set things up for Dhoni with three sixes in a row off Bishnoi in the 18th over, and Dhoni came out to a rapturous reception when Moeen holed out attempting a fourth six off the same bowler.

After a single off his first ball, Dhoni was facing two inexperienced bowlers in Mohsin and Thakur. He first bashed Mohsin to the extra-cover boundary for a one-bounce four, and followed it with the most un-Dhoniesque six you'll see: walking across because Mohsin had been bowling them wide outside off and lapping him over the keeper's head. It was a 14-run over that included three wides.

The fans - almost entirely yellow - were having the time of their lives. And when Dhoni got the strike in the last over, he clobbered a six over cow corner. Thakur attempted wide yorkers that resulted in two more fours off the last three balls and Dhoni finished on 28 off just nine balls that helped CSK smash 63 in last four overs. It was fun but not nearly enough.