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A low-scoring thriller for the 49th match of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) season between the Delhi Capitals and the Chennai Super Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on May 5. Both sides, with a bunch of power-hitters, had to struggle a bit to score runs on the surface.
Initially, before the toss, the surface looked hard enough to bat on. But, as soon as the match started, equations and predications started to change. KL Rahul and Pathum Nissanka, the in-form openers of the home team, Delhi Capitals, departed inside the power play. Inside the 11th over of the first innings, DC’s half of the batting line-up was gone.
Bowlers dominated the first innings
Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, Delhi managed to score 155 runs on the board because of the much-needed knocks by Tristan Stubbs and Sameer Rizvi. Stubbs, who is known for attacking batting style, got 38 runs from 31 balls. The knock was a bit slower for the modern age Twenty20 cricket standards, but that was needful for the team at that moment.
Sameer Rizvi helped the team to boost up the strike rate. The Impact Sub of DC remained unbeaten for 40 off 24.
Rizvi’s innings was decorated with four maximums. During the closing moments of the innings, an extra lifeline provided by CSK allowed Sameer Rizvi and Delhi to snatch a few more runs. For CSK, Noor Ahmed claimed a brace, and one wicket each for Akeal Hosein, Mukesh Choudhary, Jamie Overton, and Gurjapneet Singh.
Sanju Samson created the difference between CSK and DC
CSK, when they came to bat in the second innings, also lost a couple of wickets quickly in the forms of their skipper, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Urvil Patel. Sanju Samson, who already recorded a pair of hundreds for CSK in IPL 2026, remained firm on the track and kept on the side of the crease solid while chasing a target of 156. The target was not massive, but it might be the nature of the pitch, which made life hard for the batters to accumulate runs.
Ahead of the match, the Super Kings had 8 points from 9 matches. Delhi Capitals also had the same amount of points in as many matches. But CSK had the net run rate of +0.005, while DC’s net run rate was -0.895. Net run rate is going to be a very vital parameter for the qualifications in the play-offs, as there are multiple teams that are strongly in the race for a spot in the round of four.
Ruturaj Gaikwad praised Samson
Sanju Samson’s masterclass sealed the win for the team against the Delhi Capitals. Samson remained not out from 87 runs from 52 balls. Chennai won the match by 8 wickets and 15 balls to spare.
“I think even initially after the 2nd and 3rd game, Flem and myself were positive, we were closer to what we were last year. Sanju had come along and the bowling was doing well. We then got a couple of wins and everyone started to gel together,” CSK captain Ruturaj captain said in the presentation ceremony.
“On the batting side, more than grateful to have Sanju after the tournament he had in the WC, he's our backbone, but it's the bowlers who do the job. Aleal and Jamie come and silently do the job, Anshul is someone who does his job silently, he had a bad game today, but they've all come well together,” he added.
Read More: IPL Points Table 2026: Updated Standings, Orange Cap, Purple Cap After DC vs CSK Match 48
