Chennai Super Kings batsman Sanju Samson and Kartik Sharma after won the match against Delhi Capitals at Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Tuesday. EXPRESS PHOTO BY PRAVEEN KHANNA 05 05 2026.Delhi Capitals (DC) vs Chennai Super Kings (CSK) IPL 2026 highlights: Sanju Samson’s Help Chennai Super Kings beat Delhi Capitals by eight wickets. Earlier, Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs take Delhi Capitals to 155/7 from 20 overs after Delhi Capitals skipper Axar Patel won the toss and opted to bat first against Ruturaj Gaikwad’s Chennai Super Kings.
Delhi Capitals vs Chennai Super Kings IPL 2026: Watch here
Teams:
Chennai Super Kings (Playing XI): Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh
Delhi Capitals (Playing XI): KL Rahul(w), Pathum Nissanka, Karun Nair, Tristan Stubbs, Nitish Rana, Axar Patel(c), Ashutosh Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, T Natarajan
What a hand, Kartik Sharma, for the second game in a row for the Super Kings here. In the previous chase, he played well today, too. He supported Samson. That is a second win in a row for the Super Kings, and it is a good win. They will be hoping they can keep the momentum going. That's it from us. Do join us tomorrow.
Chennai is almost there. At the halfway point in this chase, it did seem like the Capitals were in the game, but Samson's genius on the night took the game away from the Capitals. That is the disadvantage of batting first on tricky wickets its very hard for the batters to assess what a good total is. A 170 would have been a winnable total, but the Capitals played for 220 to start with, hence the current situation.
Samson has picked a few bowlers tonight, and he is targeting them. In the previous over, he took his time against Ngidi in the previous over, but in this over against Natrajan, he is making up for that. He also quite deliberately targeted Kuldeep Yadav. After a win, the Capitals are slipping away here yet again.
Sanju Samson has scored his half-century here. In the last few deliveries, the game has changed quite a bit. Kuldeep Yadav went for too many in this game without picking a wicket. His poor spell means that Axar Patel has turned back to the seamers. Unless something miraculous happens, Delhi should get over the line here.
This is a nice partnership brewing between Kartik Sharma and Sanju Samson here in the middle. The main threat to the Super Kings here is the spinners, but they have managed to get odd boundaries every over to maintain that pressure. Kuldeep Yadav has not picked a wicket today. Samson is picking him pretty well.
Sanju Samson holds the key here. He has got himself a start in the middle and has adjusted to the pace of the surface. If Chennai Super Kings have to get over the line, he needs to bat till the end. The way it is gripping, it will be extremely difficult to ask for the new batter to come in and start right away.
Axar Patel has picked up Urvil. It is a classic left-arm spinner's delivery, the ball pitched and turned away from the batter, and Urvil stretched forward and lost his balance. KL Rahul did the rest, a massive wicket as Urvil just started to play a few shots. The wicket is gripping. Kuldeep has come into the attack here.
Ruturaj Gaikwad has fallen here. Lungi Ngidi has picked up a wicket on his comeback. It was a fuller delivery which the batter flicked straight to square-leg. Massive wicket that, and since that wicket, the scoring has gone down a bit. Ngidi is bowling superbly here in the middle.
This is a decent start for the Super Kings. One thing about chasing small totals is that the batters know what lengths to expect or how the pitch plays. If they are strategically sound enough, they will get through. It will be very interesting how Axar will rotate his bowlers as one bowler starts today.
Mitchell Starc has taken the new ball for the Delhi Capitals. He did get a bit of swing on offer, but could not get his length right. He is one of the rare commodities in modern cricket who can move the new ball and will give preference to do that instead of trying to put in too many variations.
(on the surface) "Yeah, of course. Wicket was like a bit sticky in the starting with the new-ball, especially till middle overs, it was a bit difficult to play from the hard length. So, we just trying to keep on the same length. (changes of pace key?) Yeah, of course. But when we realised the wicket is like, if you're keeping on the same length, it's difficult to hit from the length. So, we're just trying to stick on the length. (on the score) I thought we're going to stop them under 140, 145, something. But still, we are okay. We are ready to chase that."
Well, they have got to 155. Will it be enough? It should not be given how the modern game is going, but there is a bit of turn and grip which can be made use of, and Capitals do have the likes of Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav. Additionally, they also have a pretty good seam. Interesting second innings coming up, do stay with us.
Rizvi and Stubbs have put on a 50-run stand here. This is what the Capitals needed in the situation they were in. But will this be enough? We have to see. The pitch is a bit tricky and is playing a bit indifferently, but overall, it is hard to say. As we update, Jamie Overton has picked up Tristan Stubbs.
This is a nice partnership between Rizvi and Stubbs. Rizvi did start the season well, but as the tournament went on, he lost his form a bit. But today he had to play a certain role, and he is doing it pretty well. There is plenty of wind at the moment. Given where the game is, Chennai will be disappointed if there is a rain stoppage or something.
Tristan Stubbs is playing a nice hand here. He has been a superb player for the Capitals this season, going under the radar. He has not played a marquee innings of sorts, but kept his composure and did what is required for all the situations. And today he has opted to counterattack, and he is doing the same.
Sameer Rizvi has come in for the Capitals. They have made the substitute here. There have been many occasions this season that teams have sent in batters to get runs, which has handicapped their bowling attack, which only worked. It was during the Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giants game when Rajasthan got over the line.
Well, wickets continue to tumble for the Capitals. Nitish Rana was the last batter to fall against Noor, and now Gurjanpeet has now picked up the wicket of Axar Patel. Winning the toss and opting to bat first, things have clearly not worked out for the Capitals in this game. They will need to get to at least 150 to give themselves a chance.
Well, Nair could not get his innings going; he swept one straight to fine-leg. The Capitals have lost three wickets with no runs on the board. Axar Patel is the batter who is not a bad play, given the Super Kings have a left-arm wrist spinner and a left-arm finger spinner still to bowl four overs.
Karun Nair is the new batter in. He is a pretty streaky player. When he plays a good innings, it seems like why won't he get more opportunities, and on the contrary, he also tends to go through lulls in his career. Right now today what Capitals need is a good solid rebuilding innings from him.
Mukesh has picked up the wicket of Nissanka, who has been struggling to go this evening. As we update, Hosein has swapped ends, and he has picked up the wicket of KL Rahul. The ball is gripping. This is a fabulous power play for the Super Kings. Capitals need to assess what a good total on this surface is and limit their expectations.
This is a good start from the Super Kings; they have bowled well so far. Delhi Capitals have been trying, but they have just not been able to get away with the early boundaries. It seems to be one of those masked Delhi pitch which might get slower and slower as the evening goes on.
We are done with the first over, and eight runs have come off them. Although there was an appeal from the Super Kings they have decided not to go upstairs on that occasion. Mukesh Choudhary has taken the new ball from the other end. He has been pretty impressive, hasn't he, Mukesh, this season?
Well, we are all underway here in Delhi. It is one of the highest-scoring grounds, and it is not going to be any different today. If the Super Kings need to have any chance in this game to restrict the Capitals to a low total, they have to keep chipping away with wickets.
Chennai Super Kings Impact Subs: Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer, Matthew Short, Akash Madhwal, Sarfaraz Khan
Delhi Capitals Impact subs: Vipraj Nigam, Sameer Rizvi, Abishek Porel, Auqib Nabi Dar, David Miller
KL Rahul(w), Pathum Nissanka, Karun Nair, Tristan Stubbs, Nitish Rana, Axar Patel(c), Ashutosh Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, T Natarajan
Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh
We will bat first. I think the surface looks good, and we feel it’s a very good pitch. Maybe in the second innings it might slow down a bit, so I’d like to give that advantage to our bowlers. The way the tournament is going, it’s a very important match. But at the same time, it’s more important to focus on how you’re playing. You can’t think too much about points - if you do, you put extra pressure on yourself. That’s what we’ve been discussing as a team, we just want to play good cricket, and the points will take care of themselves. We’ve lost some close matches, but if you look at the season overall, I’m happy with the wins and performances. That’s what happens sometimes, but if we talk about cricket, I’m very happy with the boys’ batting and bowling. In fielding, if we had done better, we could have been in a stronger position. One change - Lungi Ngidi in place of Kyle Jamieson.
We were looking to bowl first, but the pitch looks a bit dry, so I don’t think it will change much. So batting or bowling first won’t make much difference. (On the team atmosphere) There have been some positive signs in the last 2–3 matches. Even though we haven’t won every game, there are good positives. Since the first three matches of the tournament, we’ve improved a lot in all departments. Our bowling has been doing really well, and the batting is slowly coming together. We just want to carry that momentum into the last phase of the tournament. We’re really happy coming into this game, especially after the last one. But this is a new game, so we want to start fresh and start well. It’s also great to see youngsters getting opportunities and stepping up. It’s a good sign for the franchise - they are repaying the faith shown by the management. Still a long way to go.
Axar Patel wins toss and opts to bat first against Chennai Super Kings
“We have two of the best spinners going around (Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav). So, if the wickets get tired, it would be better for us,” he said, though he felt there won't be much change.
“I just want to correct myself. When we talked earlier, it was about Lungi (Ngidi) and Mitchell Starc playing together and that it would form a nice thing with two overseas batters and two overseas bowlers. So I cannot wait for that. I guess Lungi will be ready for the next match. So hopefully he comes back in some form. So I am glad to see Mitch come with what he has done,” Bishop concluded.
“More than his bowling, there was a moment in this game which told me that he was really ready for it. He made a diving stop near point. That shows that his body is good and he is feeling good about himself and he is ready for the challenge. We also have seen him speak in the hurdle where he was quite animated in the way he was speaking,” Rayadu said on ESPNCricinfo.
“Very impressed. I had my question in my own mind about what sort of form he would come into this after the protected break that he had. And he brought some firepower for them, which was pleasing. His last over, I think, went for a few runs otherwise the figures would have been a lot better. I am happy with that from Delhi’s point of view,” Ian Bishop said on ESPNCricinfo.
“The way he bowled today, that’s why he’s a legend of the game. After three months away, coming back and delivering a performance like this on a wicket like this — it tells you how big a player he is. Yes, I am very happy that Starc is back and now he is showing everyone why he’s such a great bowler,” said Patel.
“Even after the last match, when I was giving interviews, I was saying the same thing — that you have to come every day and keep doing the same things. You can always turn things around now. So yes, very happy with the way the boys played today. The way they batted and bowled, I think both departments were excellent, and I’m very happy,” Patel said in the post match presentation.
"Good to be on the winning side after a long time. Felt it was getting into my head even when batting. Feeling really good, just wanting to make sure to do what the team needs. Mentally, feeling positive," Gaikwad said to the broadcasters.
“The additional player can be used in different ways. It's about getting the balance right at the time, and it's about horses for courses in different situations to cover all bases. A lot of conversation goes behind these decisions. It's added a complexity to team management that's unique to this tournament,” he said.
“Update on MS Dhoni is way above my pay grade. “He's not with us but he's improving. He will be ready when he's ready. He knows when he's ready to play,” Simons said at the press conference on Monday.
"We made changes because Sahil was injured. Pathum came in as a replacement, and we will continue with that approach because he performed well. I don't think there is a need for further changes."
"I don't think one must link his runs to his captaincy. He's always been very clear around the leadership, and he's very much the leader of the team... He's had some tough innings, in the sense that we've been in trouble, the wicket's been tough, and he's battled through them. That's the hallmark of a really quality batsman, that just doesn't score runs on good wickets. To me, I've always called him a surgeon in this world of chaos batting. He's the kind of guy that gets 50 runs in 22 balls, and you haven't noticed him. We're starting to see that part of him again. The leadership has always been there, he's always been the captain. It's just good that he's now scoring runs, but there was never a doubt that he was going to."
Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, Prashant Veer, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh/Akash Madhwal
KL Rahul (wk), Pathum Nissanka, Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi, Tristan Stubbs, Abishek Porel/Vipraj Nigam, Axar Patel (C), Ashutosh Sharma, Lungi Ngidi, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, T Natarajan
The last time these two sides met, the world was treated to the sight of Sanju Samson in full flow. That storm pretty much blew Delhi Capitals out of the water and gave CSK a reason to smile at long last. Now the two sides meet again and they are neck and neck in the race for the playoffs. Who prevails today? Stay tuned for more updates...
“Update on MS Dhoni is way above my pay grade.”
This one line by a member of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) coaching squad shows where the franchise is at present.
The team is placed sixth in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and still has an outside chance to make it to the play-offs. But bowling coach Eric Simons had a rather unique take on the now expected regular query about the availability of the face of the franchise for Tuesday’s game against Delhi Capitals at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
For the record, Dhoni has not travelled with the rest of the squad for the fixture that’s crucial for CSK’s playoff hopes.
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