NEW DELHI: Ishan Kishan lit up MA Chidambaram Stadium with both bat and celebration on Monday, steering Sunrisers Hyderabad into the playoffs before delivering a cheeky send-off to the home crowd after knocking Chennai Super Kings to the brink of elimination.On a surface where timing was difficult and strokeplay far from straightforward, Kishan crafted a calm 70 off 47 balls to anchor SRH’s chase of 181. His innings, stitched around a decisive 75-run stand with Heinrich Klaasen, ensured Hyderabad chased the target with six balls to spare and booked a top-four finish alongside Gujarat Titans.

But it was what followed that caught everyone’s attention.As soon as SRH sealed victory, Kishan returned to the field, looked toward the Chepauk stands and made a whistle-blowing gesture with his fingers — a direct nod to CSK’s iconic whistle culture. He then gestured toward the exits, as if telling fans it was time to head home, before shouting, “Come on, SRH!”The celebration appeared to be a response to the constant jeering he faced during the chase, with the Chennai crowd loudly backing their side throughout the innings.WATCH:

'I just wanted to finish the game for them'Kishan later revealed the knock carried personal emotion. His cousin, who recently lost his sister, was in the stands for the first time, and that became the motivation behind his innings.“Sometimes I feel it’s also about motivation, and for me, my motivation was today, my cousin is just standing there. He lost his sister. It was a tough time in our family,” Kishan said after the match.“So I just wanted to finish the game for them. I’m glad they were here to witness this innings.”

The wicketkeeper-batter said he realised while keeping that the surface would make the chase difficult.

“When I was wicketkeeping, I felt the wicket was not easy. Especially when spinners were bowling and the slower balls were working. My job was to stay till the last over.”SRH captain Pat Cummins called the wicket “pretty tough” and praised Kishan and Klaasen for choosing their match-ups smartly.