Rachin Ravindra’s composed half-century powered Chennai Super Kings to a four-wicket victory over rivals Mumbai Indians in their opening match of the Indian Premier League on Sunday at Chepauk. Opening the inning for CSK in the absence of injured Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra witnessed the firsthand experience of the enormous love fans have for superstar MS Dhoni. 

"It's difficult to soak it in when you're in the moment, because you're simply focused on winning the game for the team. It's hard to ignore, though. You hear Dhoni come out with the whistles and the noise. It's cool to share the crease with him for the first time. He's a legend of the game, and people love him here. So, it's special,” Rachin said during the press conference. 

"All the crowd would have been hoping that I gave him [the strike] and finished the game, and he would have finished it. But it's just about getting the job done. He's finished so many games to CSK, and I'm sure there's plenty more to come."

Rachin made the most of the opportunity, hitting the unbeaten 65 from 45 balls to take the side to victory.

"A few days ago, I guess, and Flem's (Stephen Fleming) quite good at those comms,” Rachin said when asked as to when he came to know about his batting position.

"It's always an honour to open for CSK knowing the history of it. And you look back at the heroes like the (Michae)] Husseys, the (Shane) Watsons, the (Brendon) McCullums, the (Faf) du Plessis, the Rutus (Rutura Gaikwad). I feel like I'm missing a few names there… (Matthew) Haydens, the Conways."

“It's certainly an honour. They have been guys who've done so well. I'm definitely grateful to be in this role. We'll take a game by game and we know it's long tournament. So, we'll just see what happens."