Gujarat Titans returned to winning ways in emphatic fashion on Saturday, beating Chennai Super Kings by eight wickets with 20 balls to spare at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. It was a performance built on two distinct acts of excellence: a ferocious powerplay from Kagiso Rabada that broke the back of CSK’s innings, and a breathtaking half-century from Sai Sudharsan that turned the chase into little more than a training session.
GT won the toss and elected to bowl first, and Rabada made the decision look inspired almost immediately. The South African pacer picked up three wickets for 25 runs, removing key batters at the top and leaving CSK scrambling to piece together a competitive score on a two-paced Chepauk surface.
Opener Sanju Samson fell early for 11 off 15 balls, and Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis and others followed in quick succession as CSK’s middle order struggled to establish any rhythm against the Titans’ disciplined attack. CSK’s fifty came up in 11.6 overs, their second-slowest of the IPL season, and Ruturaj Gaikwad’s fifty off 49 balls was his slowest since 2022.
Gaikwad, the CSK skipper, held firm throughout the innings and carried his bat to the end. He finished unbeaten on 74 off 60 balls, striking six fours and four sixes. His was a captain’s knock in difficult circumstances, but he received precious little support from those around him. A late cameo from Jamie Overton provided some relief: the allrounder smacked 18 runs off just 6 balls to help CSK post a total of 158 for 7, a score that always looked below par given the conditions.
The chase began at a clip that quickly extinguished any remaining optimism in the Chennai camp. Shubman Gill and Sudharsan put on an explosive opening stand, with GT reaching 58 for 0 at the end of the powerplay, exactly twice as many as CSK had managed for the loss of three wickets.
Gill fell stumped off Noor Ahmad for a run-a-ball contribution, but Sudharsan did not lose focus. The 23-year-old, playing on his home ground in Chennai, was in irresistible touch, threading the gaps and clearing the boundary with equal ease. He struck 87 off 46 balls, lacing his innings with seven sixes and four fours, backing up a century in his previous match and cementing his status as one of the most in-form batters of this IPL season. Jos Buttler provided steady company at the other end, and the two saw GT home without further alarm.
Sudharsan was named Player of the Match. Rabada, reflecting on his own contribution, said he did not feel he had started particularly well, adding: “That’s how cricket goes. I am glad to play a part to take the team across the line.”
The result moved Gujarat Titans up to fifth on the points table, while CSK dropped to sixth. Both sides entered the match with identical records of three wins and four losses from seven games, but the manner of this defeat will concern the CSK camp more than the result itself. On a surface offering assistance to both seamers and spinners, a total of 158 proved far too modest. Gaikwad acknowledged before the match that he has been getting starts without converting them, and Saturday was another occasion on which the captain’s runs alone could not carry his side across the line.
For GT, the win snapped a two-match losing streak and sent a strong statement ahead of the back half of the tournament. With Sudharsan in this kind of form, Rabada hunting wickets up front and Gill steadying the ship at the top, they look increasingly like a side capable of going deep in IPL 2026.
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