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Chennai Super Kings bagged two crucial points against Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, pulling themselves firmly back into playoffs contention after a stuttering start to their IPL 2026 campaign. On a sticky surface, CSK's bowlers kept the hosts to 155 before Sanju Samson led the chase with an astute, match-defining 87* off 52 , stitching together a decisive century stand with Kartik Sharma (41* off 31) to seal an eight-wicket win with 15 balls to spare.
The win takes the five-time champions to 10 points, just behind a tightly packed cluster of teams on 12, with favourable fixtures to come in the run-in.
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@B2$ Delhi Capitals 155/7 in 20 overs [Sameer Rizvi 40* (24); Noor Ahmad 2-22, Akeal Hosein 1-19] lost to Chennai Super Kings 159/2 in 17.3 overs [Sanju Samson 87* (57), Kartik Sharma 41* (31); Axar Patel 1-25] by 8 wickets
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Delhi's pitch call for this CSK game will raise eyebrows, and the decision to bat first might have only amplified them. They might have expected it to deteriorate further over the course of the game but for that they still needed get a par-plus total. It took all of one over for Akeal Hosein to show why a score estimation might have been tough. Hosein found grip and turn straightaway on a sticky surface. Timing the ball became a struggle for KL Rahul and Pathum Nissanka, and Ruturaj Gaikwad quickly doubled down, giving Hosein three Powerplay overs. He kept both right-handers on a leash and eventually forced Rahul into a desperate loft, picked off at mid-off.
At the other end, Mukesh Choudhary struck with a pace-off delivery on a hard length, compounding Delhi's early squeeze by removing Pathum Nissanka.
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Delhi's recurring issue has been exposing Sameer Rizvi early when conditions have been tricky for swing and seam bowling. This, though, felt like a surface made for him, yet he started on the Impact Sub bench. Before they could turn to him, DC slid further. Noor Ahmad was the standout through the middle overs, removing Nitish Rana and Karun Nair, while the recalled Gurjapneet Singh hit his hard lengths to trap an out-of-form Axar Patel.
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At 69 for 5 in the 11th over, DC finally pulled the trigger, bringing on Rizvi as the Impact Sub to counter spin with Ashutosh Sharma, the other batter in the original XI, better suited to counter pace at the end. This meant, they had to sacrifice an extra spinner in Vipraj Nigam. Rizvi stitched together a vital 65-run stand off 47 balls with Tristan Stubbs, the pair shuffling across their stumps and cleverly using the pace to access the areas behind square. Curiously, despite hard lengths proving effective, Gaikwad held back Jamie Overton until the 19th over, and only for one. Delhi capitalised at the death, taking 20 off the final over from Anshul Kamboj to push their total to 155.
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After Ruturaj Gaikwad fell early and Urvil Patel provided only a brief spark, Sanju Samson dropped anchor to steady things. The two Powerplays, in that sense, almost cancelled each other out. The chase, therefore, hinged on how Delhi Capitals' spin pair would fare. Axar Patel did his job, conceding just 25 from four tight overs and keeping the pressure intact. But at the other end, Kuldeep Yadav couldn't sustain it through the middle overs.
Each of his three overs saw at least one ball sail over the ropes, and the third summed up his night: too full one ball, dragged short the next. CSK capitalised, taking 34 off his spell and, in effect, bringing the equation down to a run-a-ball finish.
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It was the clarity of his match-ups. Samson didn't try to force the pace; he picked his moments and, more importantly, his bowlers. He took 25 off 9 from Kuldeep Yadav - three sixes and a four - and followed it up with 27 off 8 against T. Natarajan, striking three fours and two sixes. That targeted assault meant Delhi Capitals were constantly chasing the game, running out of both runs to defend and bowlers to turn to.
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CSK return home for the first of two back-to-back games against stragglers LSG, starting with a Sunday (May 10) clash at Chepauk. Delhi Capitals don't have to wait as long - they stay put and turn around for a Friday (May 8) night home fixture against KKR.
