IPL 2026: CSK vs DC Highlights, Match 18 - Stats, Player of the Match & More

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) long-wait for a victory at their home ground finally ended as they registered first win of the Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026), beating Delhi Capitals (DC) by 23 runs in Match 18 on Saturday, April 11 at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. After being put in to bat first, Chennai posted a massive score of 212/2 in their allotted 20 overs, riding on a splendid hundred from Sanju Samson.

In reply, DC were bundled out for 189 in their 20 overs, with Tristan Stubbs playing a lone hand of 60 (38), while Jamie Overton bowled a sensational spell to run through DC's batting. It was the first victory for CSK at their home ground after six successive losses.

Earlier in the day, CSK once again lost their captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad (15 off 18), cheaply. However, much to the delight of CSK fans, Sanju Samson found his form back and raced to his half-century in 26 balls. He got good support from Ayush Mhatre (59* off 36), who continued to be amongst the runs, scoring his second fifty of the season.

The duo got involved in a massive 113-run stand off 68 balls. Mhatre retired himself out in the 18^th over, to bring hard-hitting Shivam Dube to the crease as CSK aimed for a strong finish. At the other end, Samson completed his fourth IPL century off 51 deliveries. Following a good finish from Samson and Dube (20 off 10), CSK breached the 210-run mark and set a stiff target for DC to chase.

Delhi started their innings well with Pathum Nissanka (41 off 24) and KL Rahul (18 off 10), adding 61 runs off 30 balls for the first wicket. However, after a solid opening partnership, DC lost four wickets within 15 runs and were reduced to 76/4 after eight overs. David Miller (17 off 14) and Tristan Stubbs tried to stabilise the innings with their 45-run stand off 26 balls for the fifth wicket.

Jamie Overton, nipped the crucial stand in the bud, by destroying Miller's stumps in the 13th over. Following his dismissal, Tristan Stubbs played a lone hand for Delhi, without much support from the other end. He hit Overton straight to mid off in the penultimate over, which proved to be the final nail in the coffin for DC. 

However, there was some controversy regarding the dismissal, as Stubbs had asked for a glove change in the middle of the over, but his request was denied by the fourth umpire, who stopped his teammate Nitish Rana on the boundary, carrying gloves. 

Meanwhile, after registering their first win of the season, CSK moved to ninth spot (second last) with two points to their name. On the other hand, Delhi maintained fourth position with four points from as many games.

Best Batter of the Match

Best Bowler of the Match

Player of the Match

Sanju Samson was deservedly adjudged Player of the Match for his sensational century. He scored an unbeaten 115* off 56 deliveries with the help of 15 fours and four sixes. Samson got involved in a crucial stand with Ayush Mhatre, which put CSK in the driver's seat.

Turning Point

Delhi Capitals dropped three catches during the first innings; however, the most crucial one came in the 10^th over, when Pathum Nissanka dropped Sanju Samson. The CSK opener was on 52 as Nissanka gave him a reprieve at long off, and Samson ensured that DC were left ruing it for the rest of the innings with a breathtaking century.

What did the captains say:

Winning Captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings):

Feels good to finally get that win. Great performance. We have been batting well batting first. We showed really good signs. Sanju took to the opposition and played a magnificent knock. Really proud of the bowling effort. We don't have that X-factor in the bowling attack. We're trying to use our lengths really well. One or two overs cost us in the last few games. (On the crowd) Chennai fans are always behind us no matter what. It is just about lovely people enjoying cricket.

Losing Captain, Axar Patel (Delhi Capitals):

I think we got off to a good start, but if we talk about the chase, after the powerplay we lost two or three wickets in quick succession, which broke the momentum. I feel the difference in fielding was the game-changing moment for me. And if you look at it, whenever wickets fell, they fell in pairs, which made things very difficult. Wickets kept falling in clusters, and that led to a drop in momentum. I think the batsmen did a decent job, but overall our fielding let us down, because if you look at it, chasing around 213-215 was pretty much possible. I would like to credit the bowlers, they did a very good job restricting the opposition to around 215-217. It was a very good batting wicket. But as I said, if we hadn’t dropped one or two catches in the field, the result could have been different. (Did the pitch slow down?) No, nothing really changed. I think it was tougher for them, maybe because of the dew and they bowled pretty well.