Sai Sudharsan’s scintillating 87 off 46 balls powered Gujarat Titans (GT) to a commanding eight-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Match 37 of the IPL 2026 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing a modest target of 159, GT cruised to 162/2 in just 16.4 overs, with Jos Buttler finishing the game in style with an unbeaten 39.
Earlier, Ruturaj Gaikwad’s unbeaten 74 and a late cameo from Jamie Overton helped CSK recover from a top-order collapse to post 158/7 in 20 overs on a challenging Chepauk surface.
CSK innings: Gaikwad anchors, Overton provides late spark
Asked to bat first, CSK endured a shaky start as Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada extracted movement and bounce early on.
Rabada struck key blows, including removing the in-form Sanju Samson (11), while Impact Substitute Sarfaraz Khan fell for a first-ball duck. Debutant Urvil Patel also failed to make an impact as CSK slumped to 28/3 inside the Power-play.
The slide continued when Manav Suthar dismissed Dewald Brevis, reducing CSK to 38/4. With wickets falling regularly, the scoring rate took a significant hit as CSK crawled to their slowest fifty of the season in the 12th over.
Gaikwad, struggling initially for fluency, held one end firm and stitched a crucial partnership with Shivam Dube (22), who provided some momentum with a few boundaries before being bowled by Arshad Khan.
The CSK skipper brought up a patient half-century off 49 balls — the slowest fifty of IPL 2026 — underlining the difficulty of batting on the surface.
A late flourish came from Jamie Overton, who smashed 18 off just six balls, helping CSK push towards a competitive total. Gaikwad accelerated in the final over with a flurry of boundaries to finish unbeaten on 74 off 60 deliveries.
Rabada was the standout bowler for GT with figures of 3/25, while Arshad Khan chipped in with 2/43.
GT chase: Sudharsan dominates as Titans cruise
In response, Gujarat Titans made a confident start, with Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan adding 55 runs in the powerplay to lay a solid foundation.
Noor Ahmad provided the breakthrough by dismissing Gill (33), but that did little to slow down GT’s charge.
Sudharsan then took control of the chase, showcasing a blend of timing and power as he dismantled CSK’s bowling attack. He struck four fours and seven sixes in a dominant knock that effectively sealed the game.
He shared a match-winning 97-run partnership with Jos Buttler, who played the perfect supporting role.
Although Sudharsan fell for 87 with just a few runs needed, Buttler ensured there were no further hiccups, finishing the match with a six as GT completed the chase with 20 balls to spare.
With this win, Gujarat Titans move to four wins in eight matches, keeping themselves firmly in the mid-table race. Chennai Super Kings, meanwhile, slip to their fifth defeat of the season and will need to regroup quickly to stay in contention for the playoffs.
The two sides will meet again in the return fixture later in the season, where CSK will look to avenge this defeat.
CSK vs GT IPL 2026: Playing XIs
Chennai Super Kings:
Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Sanju Samson (wk), Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Gurjapneet Singh, Kartik Sharma
Gujarat Titans:
Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar