Chennai Super Kings star Suresh Raina, on Saturday, became the first batsman to complete 5000 runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and consolidated his place at the top of the all-time list of run-scorers in the tournament.
He got to the milestone with a single in the IPL 2019 opener against the Royal Challengers Bangalore at the jam-packed MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai.
Raina now has over 5000 runs from 177 matches at a strike-rate of 138.15 including 35 fifties and one hundred. A vital part of the CSK line-up, Raina’s lone century came against the Kings XI Punjab in 2013.
Raina aka ‘Chinna Thala’, was lauded by his wife Priyanka, as the southpaw reached the record feat.
“❤️❤️❤️ #SuperProud @ImRaina #IPL2019 #5000Runs”, she wrote on Twitter.
❤️❤️❤️ #SuperProud @ImRaina #IPL2019 #5000Runs pic.twitter.com/OGsMfwkmzD
— Priyanka Chaudhary Raina (@PriyankaCRaina) March 23, 2019
Suresh too thanked his wife for her appreciation. “Thanks love for motivating me always ❤️👌✌️”, he wrote in reply.
Thanks love for motivating me always ❤️👌✌️
— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) March 23, 2019
Meanwhile, Harbhajan Singh led an inspired spin attack to power the defending champions register a comprehensive seven-wicket win over Virat Kohli-men.
Harbhajan and Imran Tahir claimed three wickets each to dismiss Royal Challengers for a paltry 70, a total the Super Kings achieved with 14 balls to spare in Chennai.
