196.82 strike rate, a steep target, and a silent crowd that night—Marcus Stoinis rewrote Chepauk history with a blistering knock that stunned CSK at home
The MA Chidambaram Stadium, known for its slow turners and devoted yellow sea, witnessed something it had never seen before—its fortress breached in record-breaking fashion. In the 39th match of IPL 2024 on April 23, a Marcus Stoinis masterclass powered the Lucknow Super Giants to the highest successful run chase in Chepauk’s IPL history, toppling CSK’s 210 with three balls to spare.
This wasn’t just a chase but a defiance of history, numbers, and atmosphere. Stoinis stood tall amid the ruins of an early collapse and transformed a near-impossible task into a walk on Marina Beach.
Credit: ESPN
Earlier, Ruturaj Gaikwad had the crowd eating out of his hands. Calm, composed, and clinical, he became the first CSK captain to score a century in the IPL, finishing unbeaten on 108 off 60 deliveries.
His innings, laced with 12 fours and 3 sixes, stitched a 104-run partnership with Shivam Dube, who batted like a man trying to break every bone in the ball. Dube’s 27-ball 66 was fireworks on steroids—7 sixes, 3 fours, and one hell of a run out that cut his knock short.
CSK posted a towering 210 for 4, and the Chepauk crowd, seasoned in success, was ready for another night of dominance.
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The chase, however, didn’t begin with the confidence it ended with. Quinton de Kock fell for a duck, and KL Rahul soon followed him back. Devdutt Padikkal’s stay was awkward and slow—13 off 19—and by the halfway mark, Lucknow was 88 for 3, with the required rate ballooning.
But amid the tumbling dominoes stood Marcus Stoinis. He brought up his fifty in 33 balls, but it was what followed that tilted the night.
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Nicholas Pooran arrived like thunder after a dry spell. With LSG needing 54 runs off the last 24 balls, he launched into Shardul Thakur with an over that turned the tide—20 runs, leaving a sea of yellow gone quiet.
Pooran’s 15-ball 34 quickened the pace, but it was Stoinis who kept the chase from slipping away. When Pooran fell to Pathirana at 158, the equation was still challenging—53 runs needed off 21. But Stoinis had other ideas.
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The final over arrived with 17 still needed. Stoinis, on 107, looked like a man possessed. The first ball went for six—Chepauk flinched. Then came a no-ball, and three boundaries followed. In just three legal deliveries, it was done. Game. Set. Record.
Stoinis ended unbeaten on 124 off 63 balls, peppered with 13 fours and 6 sixes, and most importantly, struck at a rate of 196.82—a pace that would’ve made even Dhoni blink twice.
Credit: ESPN
The result left Chennai shell-shocked and dropped them to fifth on the table. Lucknow, on the other hand, climbed into the top four. But more than just the points, this was a message. A batter walked into a cauldron, silenced a crowd, and etched a knock that will be spoken of every time a big chase comes to Chepauk.
A hundred is always special. But a 124* in a 211 chase at a strike rate kissing 200? That’s Marcus Stoinis for you.
