Gujarat Titans bounced back from their Bengaluru setback in emphatic fashion, cruising past Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk with eight wickets to spare. CSK had looked set for a competitive total after Kagiso Rabada’s early burst, but once the Titans’ celebrated top order found a rhythm on a surface that occasionally played uneven, the chase quickly tilted in GT’s favour. Sai Sudharsan, riding the momentum from his century in the previous game, produced a brilliant 87 off 46 balls to power the run chase, finishing it with 20 balls still left in the tank.
In the match, Chennai Super Kings posted 158/7 in their 20 overs. Ruturaj Gaikwad made 74 not out off 60, while Rabada struck 3/25. Gujarat Titans then reached 162/2 in 16.4 overs, with Sudharsan scoring 87 off 46 and Jos Buttler remaining 39 not out off 30. The Titans won by 8 wickets.
Powerplay control swings the early contest
Gujarat Titans won the toss and chose to field, and the decision paid off almost immediately through disciplined Powerplay bowling. Out of 36 deliveries in the opening phase, none were served up on a full length. The hard-length options kept batters guessing: on that line, a wicket fell, while shorter balls brought two more in the mix. Rabada, in particular, continued a strong run of form, forcing Sanju Samson into edging behind before the bowler struck again. Urvil Patel was then met with a 149kph bumper that rose sharply as the batter came forward, resulting in a top-edge and further pressure on the CSK innings.
CSK’s response involved a tactical change, bringing Sarfaraz Khan in as an Impact Sub, but Mohammed Siraj made sure the moment didn’t last—Sarfaraz was dismissed on the first ball he faced. The hosts were left scrambling at 28/3 after six overs.
Gaikwad’s late acceleration, then the Titans take over
Chennai’s innings continued to wobble. They slid to 37/4 when Dewald Brevis mistimed Manav Suthar, and by the halfway stage CSK were still only at 43/4. Ruturaj Gaikwad, though, was battling through a stubborn phase at the crease, trapped in a 35-ball boundary drought—the longest such stretch by any batter during the season up to that point. The breakthrough finally arrived in the 13th over. After absorbing a blow on the bicep, Gaikwad fired back with two sixes off Arshad Khan, jolting both his own rhythm and the innings.
That surge became the platform for CSK’s closing push. The team smashed 83 runs from the final six overs, with Gujarat Titans struggling to contain the finish and producing an untidy fielding display. Shivam Dube was dropped three times; he contributed 22, yet still played a key role in a 59-run partnership from 43 balls with Gaikwad. Jamie Overton then added late impetus, striking 18 off just six deliveries, giving the total the heft it needed at the end.
Rashid Khan’s spell, however, stood out for its brevity. He was held back until the 15th over and then used for only that one outing. It went for 21 runs, extending an uncharacteristically subdued spell of form after he had also conceded 49 in Bengaluru two nights earlier.
The chase began with Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan setting the foundation once more. Gill had joked that in Bengaluru he didn’t get much of the strike during the Powerplay, but in this game Sudharsan took charge immediately with the first ball, and Gill then anchored the early phase. Gujarat’s Powerplay dominance was clear as they knocked off 55 runs off the target during that period. Gill faced 22 balls and made 32, striking a six and a four off Akeal Hosein, and also maximising an Overton over to bring his tally of 17 from that passage alone. Gill fell right after the fielding restrictions, stumped brilliantly by Samson off Noor Ahmad, but his start had already done its job—there was no meaningful wobble to derail the chase.
Sudharsan and Buttler then did what the Titans needed at the death. After a brief stabilization, the duo took the game away quickly, with Sudharsan completing a 33-ball half-century to accompany the ton he had scored just two nights earlier. Buttler kept the pressure steady and ensured the middle overs didn’t force GT into using the rest of their batting depth in a hurry. Together, they stitched 97 runs off 60 balls before Sudharsan was dismissed by an outstanding catch from Brevis, the South African making amends for an earlier effort that had also been impressive but had not turned into a catch. The chase was wrapped up with 20 balls remaining.
Looking ahead, CSK will enjoy a substantial six-day break before hosting Mumbai Indians next Saturday. Gujarat Titans, meanwhile, head back home for their next assignment against RCB on Thursday, April 30.
