Key Points

Pant's own knock was a gritty 63 off 49 balls -- his first fifty of the season -- but it lacked the late-innings flourish that his side desperately needed. Walking in early after Aiden Markram and Nicholas Pooran were dismissed inside the Powerplay, Pant tried to consolidate and build partnerships with Mitchell Marsh and Ayush Badoni. While the foundation was there, the final ten overs produced only patches of acceleration.

"We feel we were 10-15 runs short, we kept losing wickets, whenever momentum was there we kept losing wickets and we couldn't get a partnership. the wicket was nice to bat on, stopping a bit, we could have got ten runs more. Definitely feeling better about my batting with every game ... getting into rhythm," Pant said after the match

The real difference came in the middle overs, where CSK's spinners stifled any progress. Ravindra Jadeja removed Marsh and later had Badoni stumped, completing MS Dhoni's 200th IPL fielding dismissal. Noor Ahmad was exceptional as well, especially in his matchup with Pant. The LSG captain managed only 6 runs off 15 balls against the left-arm wrist spinner, a battle that symbolised his innings -- full of grit, but short on impact.

Despite some late boundaries from Pant off Matheesha Pathirana in the 18th over, Lucknow finished on a modest 166/7, well below par on a two-paced surface. "There was a lot of time I thought about bowling Bishnoi [earlier], but I discussed with other players and thought, let's take it deeper," Pant said about his bowling strategy.

Making his IPL debut, 20-year-old Shaik Rasheed opened the batting for CSK and impressed immediately, scoring 27 off 19. Alongside Rachin Ravindra, who smashed 37 off 22, the pair added 50 in just 4.2 overs. That flying start tilted the momentum CSK's way, even as LSG's spinners tried to claw back with timely wickets.

From 111/5 in 15 overs, CSK needed 56 off 30 -- a situation tailor-made for a Dhoni special. The veteran, walking in ahead of Jamie Overton, rolled back the years with a composed 26* off 11, featuring a one-handed six over deep square leg. Shivam Dube, anchoring the chase from the other end, broke loose in the 19th over, taking 19 runs off Shardul Thakur to leave just 4 to get.

Dube finished unbeaten on 43 off 37, and fittingly, it was Dhoni who stayed till the end as CSK broke their five-match losing streak and secured their second win of the season.

For Pant and LSG, the loss is a setback, but one they'll look to learn from. "Definitely feeling better about my batting with every game... getting into rhythm," Pant concluded.

- IANS