Sanju Samson ended unbeaten on 115 off just 56 balls to build the platform for CSK’s win. | Photo Credit: B. Jothi Ramalingam

When it rains, it pours for Sanju Samson. After failing to get past single-digit scores in the first three matches for Chennai Super Kings (CSK), the Samson storm struck the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Saturday against Delhi Capitals (DC).

The Kerala batter scored his fourth Indian Premier League (IPL) hundred, the first for his new franchise, to help CSK beat the Capitals by 23 runs and open its account in IPL 2026. The wicketkeeper-batter battled through the humidity and lower-back strain to remain unbeaten on 115 off 56 balls, playing an innings built around piercing gaps rather than bludgeoning the ball into the stands.

Asked to bat first by Axar Patel on a surface termed dry by CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, the home side started on the front foot in the PowerPlay with Samson leading the charge. The 31-year-old oozed confidence with his footwork, putting away anything wide on offer from the new-ball bowlers. Samson’s intermittent boundaries meant Gaikwad’s scratchy start did not harm the scoring rate in the first phase.

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He took on the unfavourable match-up against Axar by collecting two boundaries through cover, a prelude to the rest of the innings, where the spinners were denied a chance to enjoy any control. After Gaikwad’s dismissal, DC did not utilize the chances to send Samson and Ayush Mhatre back to the pavilion. K.L. Rahul failed to gather the ball when Mhatre looked to take a blind run and Samson was dropped at long off two balls later.

Despite the first six in the innings only coming in the 11th over, the host continued to maintain a nine-plus run rate, which only surged upwards during the partnership between Samson and his junior partner. Their 100-run stand was brought up in just 56 balls, setting up CSK to go big in the final phase of the innings. But Lungi Ngidi and Mukesh Kumar brought the run flow to an abrupt stop, stifling the batters by going full and wide. CSK rolled the dice by retiring out half-centurion Mhatre for Shivam Dube, a change which allowed the side to find late acceleration and post 212.

CSK’s worst nightmare seemed to be coming back to haunt it when openers Rahul and Pathum Nissanka blazed to a fifty-run opening association within four overs. Khaleel Ahmed managed to prise out the former with a well-directed short ball, a small tug on the door which the home side then slammed open. Nissanka perished soon after, unable to time his attempted lob over mid-on.

As the rumbling among fans grew in volume, Sarfaraz Khan held on to a diving catch at point, hanging in the air horizontally, parallel to the ground, to hand Gurjapneet Singh a wicket on his first ball in the IPL and drive the noise to its zenith.

David Miller and Tristan Stubbs managed to silence the yellow-clad population for a while with a 45-run stand in just 26 balls. Seeing the stumps light up behind Miller, the almost-hero from DC’s previous encounter, turned the whistles back on. A few lusty blows from Stubbs and the lower order kept the Men in Yellow on their toes before Jamie Overton capped off an excellent night with the ball (4/18) by removing the Protea batter in the penultimate over to help his side break its duck.

Published on Apr 11, 2026