Ravindra Jadeja makes CSK fans almost forget Suresh Raina achieving THIS impressive feat

Having clobbered Royal Challengers Bangalore's star bowler Harshal Patel for an astonishing 37 runs in the final over of the CSK vs RCB match on Sunday, India's Ravindra Jadeja solidified his place in the IPL history books forever. Equalling Chris Gayle's long-held record, Jadeja's last over knock, combined with a tremendous bowling spell that ended with figures of 3/13, rightfully became the centre of conversation after the match. However, the Jadeja vs RCB spectacle took away from another great milestone achieved by an Indian during the match.

Ravindra Jadeja vs RCB knock steals Suresh Raina's thunder

After his somewhat controversial departure from the IPL 2020 in the UAE, Chennai Super Kings mainstay Suresh Raina has come back into the tournament in commendable form. The Suresh Raina IPL 2021 campaign so far, has seen the veteran Indian batsman produce a sensational 54 against the Delhi Capitals, along with a few good contributions against the Rajasthan Royals and the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Playing against RCB on Sunday, Raina could only manage 24 runs before he was sent off by the Purple Cap holder, Harshal Patel.

However, these 24 runs came off of just 18 balls, at a decent strike rate of 133.33. Of these 18 deliveries, three were hit out of the park for 6s, while one was a boundary. Seemingly an ordinary knock, ended by an ordinary catch by Devdutt Padikkal, this cameo actually helped Raina into a hallowed group at the IPL - making him the 7th player overall, and the 4th Indian in the 'Most sixes in IPL history' leaderboards. Taking his tally of sixes at the tournament to 202, this knock made Suresh Raina just the fourth Indian to cross the 200 sixes mark at the IPL behind MI skipper Rohit Sharma, CSK skipper MS Dhoni and RCB skipper Virat Kohli. 

With his place in the CSK team solidified and a guaranteed nine matches - more if CSK continue their form late into the tournament - Raina may just end the tournament at a much higher position than his current one. However, even with his best efforts - or anyone's for that matter - it seems quite unlikely that they will catch up with the table topper of the 'Most sixes in IPL history' category - Chris Gayle. With a massive 354 sixes at the IPL and many more to add, Gaye is sure to keep his place at the top for at least this year.

Here are some fan reactions on the Suresh Raina IPL 2021 achievement on Sunday -

Suresh Raina stats at the IPL

Having made a mammoth 5472 runs from the 198 matches he has played at the Indian Premier League, Suresh Raina is also in second place overall - behind Virat Kohli - for the Most Runs scored at the IPL. With 39 half-centuries, Raina is in 5th place for the record of Most 50s at the IPL and in 4th place for the Most Fours. His strike rate at the tournament is a strong 137.07 with an average of 33.16.

Image Credits: CSK Twitter