Chennai Super Kings\u2019 Sunday at Chepauk turned into a classic case of two contrasting innings. The team looked rattled during the opening stretch, posting only 50 runs after the first 12 overs on a surface that played slowly and unevenly. Gujarat Titans\u2019 fast bowling made full use of those conditions, striking early to put CSK on the back foot with four quick wickets. Then, after a well-timed strategic time-out, Chennai completely changed tempo, blasting 107 runs in the final eight overs to land in a defendable position.<\/p>\n
At the centre of Chennai\u2019s turnaround was captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, who steadied the chase of momentum rather than chasing boundaries from the first ball. He finished unbeaten on 74 off 60, marking his maiden fifty of IPL 2026 and offering a clear sign that he is finding his rhythm again after a difficult start to the season.<\/p>\n
In the closing stages, Gaikwad\u2019s acceleration became the difference. Over the last 18 deliveries, he added 29 runs, with Jamie Overton contributing a spark as well\u2014hitting 18 off six balls to help CSK build speed and pressure.<\/p>\n
Despite the match-changing finish, the early part of Gaikwad\u2019s innings attracted criticism. For the first 42 balls of his knock, he managed only 35 runs, including 24 dot balls. His boundary count was also limited during that period, with just two fours\u2014both struck early in his innings when he was facing Mohammed Siraj in the third over.<\/p>\n
Former India batter Murali Kartik said he struggled to understand the captain\u2019s decision-making, pointing to the pace of the fifty. Kartik highlighted that Gaikwad reached a 49-ball half-century\u2014described as the slowest by a batter in the Impact Sub era (from after 2023). He also questioned how Gaikwad concluded his innings, especially the middle phase.<\/p>\n
Shaun Pollock, who was also part of the discussion panel, pushed back on Kartik\u2019s criticism. Pollock argued that the context of the game demanded Gaikwad to hold things together while wickets kept falling and the pitch remained tricky.<\/p>\n
Former India head coach Sanjay Bangar offered a more tempered explanation, suggesting the innings wasn\u2019t driven by any explicit instruction to slow down. Instead, he described it as an internal restriction that eventually eased once Gaikwad found his range.<\/p>\n
Chennai Super Kings\u2019 Sunday at Chepauk turned into a classic case of two contrasting innings. The team looked rattled during the opening stretch, posting only…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":5529,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"CSK vs GT IPL 2026: Chepauk Collapse After Ruturaj 50","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"CSK vs GT at Chepauk: early collapse after Ruturaj\u2019s 50, then a late surge fails to mask a shaky start as Titans strike early.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\n