Sanju Samson Ton Guides CSK To First Win Of IPL 2026, DC Capitulate

After three silent outings, Sanju Samson rediscovered his batting range with a fabulous hundred as the bowlers' fangs regrew, helping Chennai Super Kings defeat Delhi Capitals by 23 runs to register their first win of IPL 2026 here on Saturday. Samson (115 not out, 56 balls) and Ayush Mhatre (59, 36 balls) added 113 runs for the second wicket to power CSK to a competitive 212 for two, before the Delhi Capitals stumbled against Jamie Overton's superb spell (4/18) to be bundled out for 189.

Tristan Stubbs (60) delayed the inevitable for DC with a gutsy half-century.

While it was the Super Kings' first win of the season, the Capitals slumped to their second defeat in a row.

Chasing 213, Delhi made a bold start, racing to 61 in just five overs through a fine stand between openers KL Rahul and Pathum Nissanka (41).

However, the dismissal of Nissanka took some steam out of DC's chase. Nissanka, whose catch was grassed by Khaleel Ahmed off Anshul Kamboj, failed to capitalise on the let-off, spooning the very next ball from the pacer to Dewald Brevis at the edge of the circle.

At 61 for two in 5.2 overs, DC were still in a decent position, but the Chennai bowlers redrafted their strategy at this stage.

Their pacers - Overton, Khaleel and Kamboj - began to bang the ball into the red-soil surface and extracted good bounce, cramping the DC batters for space and preventing them from executing their shots effectively.

Sameer Rizvi and Axar Patel fell to such deliveries, with Sarfaraz Khan playing a key role in the latter's dismissal by pulling off a tremendous full-length diving catch at point.

Delhi still had David Miller and Tristan Stubbs in their line-up to challenge CSK, but Overton's testing hard-length delivery clipped Miller's leg-stump bails, compounding the Capitals' woes.

However, Samson was the chief architect of CSK's memorable Chepauk night.

After being asked to bat first, Samson brought up his first substantial knock in a yellow jersey and was involved in an excellent stand with Mhatre, who underlined his enormous potential, as the pair added 113 runs for the second wicket in a little over 11 overs.

It was Samson's fourth IPL hundred, his first for CSK and the first century of this IPL season.

A big innings from Samson was essential for both himself and CSK to restore the belief of the 'Anbu-den' faithful, and he delivered with a brilliant knock in front of the home crowd.

It was a typically Samson innings. The Kerala batter had looked unsure of his footwork and shot selection in earlier matches this season, but on this occasion, a familiar Samson emerged.

His feet, eyes and hands rediscovered their coordination and, consequently, shots flowed to all parts of the field. However, skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad failed to accelerate even in the Powerplay, with the 62-run opening-wicket alliance built almost entirely around Samson's aggression.

Samson gave an early glimpse of his touch with two back-to-back fours off pacer Mukesh Kumar, but the standout shot of his innings was a glorious six over extra cover off left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav.

Fortune, too, favoured Samson as he was dropped on 55 by Pathum Nissanka near long-off off Axar Patel.

The 31-year-old fully capitalised on the reprieve, making DC pay for their lapse. Samson brought up his fifty in 26 balls, one fewer than Mhatre, and reached his hundred in 52 balls as CSK surged ahead.

Mhatre, meanwhile, was a delight to watch before he was retired out after a well-compiled knock to allow the big-hitting Shivam Dube an opportunity at the crease.

Until then, Mhatre entertained the Chepauk crowd with several handsome strokes.

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Topics mentioned in this article

Sanju Samson Chennai Super Kings Delhi Capitals IPL 2026 Cricket