Watch: Needing 10 off 2 balls vs Mohit, Ravindra Jadeja smokes 6, 4 as CSK win IPL; wife Rivaba in tears, Dhoni mobbed

It took three days, but in the end, the world witnessed an IPL final that more than lived up to its billing. After one entire evening of rain and interruption in the other, the summit clash entered May 30 and Chennai Super Kings were crowned champions, emerging victorious over Gujarat Titans by five wickets (DLS) to win a record-equalling fifth IPL title. MS Dhoni joined Rohit Sharma as the joint most successful captain in the history of IPL after CSK chased down their revised target of 171 in 15 overs in an absolute nail-biting and riveting last-ball thriller. In a match that remained topsy-turvy till the very end, it was the calmness of Ravindra Jadeja that saw Chennai over the line as with 10 needed off 2 balls against the red-hot and in-form Mohit Sharma, Jadeja went 6 and 4 to break GT and Hardik Pandya's hearts in an absolute manic finish at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi stadium.

Jadeja, who made more noise on his social media than with his performances on the field, couldn't have chosen a better occasion to redeem himself. He was the skipper last year when CSK began their campaign, but after five losses, he was removed as captain and Dhoni was handed the reins again. The move apparently left a sour taste in Jadeja's mouth, leading to widespread reports of a rift between CSK and their star all-rounder. The coming months weren't very comforting either as a knee injury ruled Jadeja out for almost six months. But this IPL, for all the rumours of his spat and whatnot, Jadeja came out on top on the night everything was at stake for him.

Also Read: CSK vs GT IPL 2023 Final Highlights

With 13 needed off the last over, up against Mohit, who had dismissed Ambati Rayudu and MS Dhoni off successive balls in his previous over, Jadeja and Shivam Dube found themselves in a do-or-die situation. Dube had smoked consecutive sixes off Rashid Khan but was still far from his fluent self. Jadeja, meanwhile, had faced just three deliveries for four runs before Mohit was handed over the ball to bowl the final over of the innings. The wily old customer that he is, Mohit gave it his all, bowling a dot ball and then giving away just three singles off the next three in a wonderful start. With the equation then coming down to 10 off 2, Jadeja knew it was now or never. So what does he do? BANG… he goes down the wicket for a six over the bowler's head.

Ravi Shastri on air mentioned the possibility of a Super Over, but given the dimensions of the ground, only an overthrow could have made it happen. After a long chat with Hardik, Mohit ran in for the final delivery of IPL 2023, which surprisingly ended up being a low full toss veering into the batsman's pads. Jadeja moved a tad to his left and ticked it past the short fine leg fielder for a boundary. Jadeja took off, as did his CSK teammates. CSK were IPL champions.

Watch Jadeja's unbelievable finish below:

With emotions everywhere, Jadeja ran straight to the CSK dugout, where Dhoni welcomed him by lifting the all-rounder on his shoulders before the two eventually got mobbed with the entire CSK unit. In the stands, Jadeja's wife Rivaba was in tears before finally letting out a big 'WOAH' in the end.

Here is the wholesome moment:

"I was just thinking that I need to swing hard no matter what. Yeah, anything can happen. I was looking to hit straight because Mohit can bowl slower ones. Want to say congratulations to each and every fan of CSK. Just keep cheering the way you've been cheering," Jadeja said after the match.

Earlier, Sai Sudharsan's 96 off 47 deliveries and Wriddhiman Saha's half-century had propelled GT to 214/4 - the 37th 200-plus score this IPL. However, three balls into the CSK innings, a fresh spell of rain lashed Ahmedabad. Although it lasted for 20 minutes, it did more damage than one imagined. The strong winds made it particularly tough for the groundstaff to properly get the covers placed. Hence, the ground was left to be in a pretty bad shape. With puddles of water on practice pitches, it required a lot of sawdust to repair. After the first official inspection around 10:30PM, a second took place at 11:30, after which the revised rules were laid out. Play was to resume at 12:10AM and CSK needed to score 171 off 15 overs.

Devon Conway and Ruturaj Gaikwad began in the only way they knew, which is to give CSK a rollicking start putting on 74 in 6.3 overs. Once the opening pair perished, Ajinkya Rahane's fairytale IPL was up for a final chapter as his two outlandish sixes proved. Ambati Rayudu, playing his last IPL match, had some fun when he hammered a hat-trick of sixes off Mohit to break the shackles for CSK. But once he got out the next ball and Dhoni's crunch drive found the fielder for a golden duck, GT had one foot inside the door… before Jadeja slammed it shut.