Twenty-one games into this edition of the Indian Premier League, and not once had a team successfully defended a sub-200 total.
That was until Chennai Super Kings flipped that script. The five-time champion secured a 32-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday to break the streak.
The 33,000-plus crowd did not have to wait long to celebrate Tamil New Year as Sanju Samson set a blistering PowerPlay tone, opening the innings with three consecutive fours off Vaibhav Arora.
While a lack of early aggression has often plagued CSK, Samson provided the ideal antidote. The momentum briefly stalled when Anukul Roy struck with his first delivery, tempting Ruturaj Gaikwad with a slow, full ball that drew a slog sweep straight to deep midwicket.
It was a familiar sight for the CSK skipper, who has now fallen early in four of his five outings this season. With an average opening stand of just 24.8—the lowest this season—the recurring top-order failures point toward a reshuffle.
Ayush Mhatre, however, quickly wrested back control. He dismantled Cameron Green in a 21-run over, scoring two fours and two sixes.
The 47-run partnership ended when Mhatre holed out to Ramandeep Singh off the final ball of the sixth over. Dewald Brevis, promoted ahead of Shivam Dube, ensured the tempo did not dip, clearing the ropes off just his second delivery.
The innings shifted again when Kartik Tyagi dismissed Samson, a 148 kmph delivery angling in to rattle the stumps and end a steady 39-run stand.
Sunil Narine then bowled Sarfaraz Khan through the gate, while Arora returned to remove Brevis in the 18th over. From 100 in 9.5 overs, CSK slipped to 175/5 by the end of the 18th.
Despite the flying start, the visiting bowlers controlled the death overs effectively. Kartik Tyagi (2/35) stood out, varying pace and length smartly as CSK managed just over seven runs per over in the final phase to finish on 192.
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The match saw a tactical twist in the second innings as Narine replaced captain Ajinkya Rahane at the top to open with Finn Allen. This surprise forced CSK to adjust: Khaleel Ahmed took the new ball in place of Akeal Hosein.
However, KKR’s gamble failed to yield a significant advantage. Allen’s struggles continued as Anshul Kamboj provided an early breakthrough; it was Allen’s third single-digit score in five innings.
Narine survived a dropped chance by Gaikwad at midwicket, but Khaleel ensured it didn’t hurt the host, dismissing the West Indian for 24. With Rahane and Angkrish Raghuvanshi at the crease, KKR limped through the PowerPlay with just 36 runs on board.
The pair managed to stabilise the innings with a 51-run stand. Akeal Hosein nearly had Rahane when Sarfaraz dropped a difficult chance, but the bowler found his reward the very next delivery. Raghuvanshi miscued a shot to Brevis, giving Hosein his maiden IPL wicket.
Noor Ahmad then dismantled the middle order by claiming three vital wickets. He dismissed Rahane and Cameron Green on consecutive deliveries before returning to remove Rinku Singh.
With KKR reeling at 90/6, the responsibility fell to Rovman Powell and Ramandeep Singh. But 100 in the last seven overs was always going to be a tall ask. In the end, CSK registered its second consecutive win to move up to eighth on the points table.
With just a solitary point from five games, KKR finds itself in a precarious position. While the imminent arrival of Matheesha Pathirana offers a potential boost, the side will likely require a miracle to remain in contention for playoff qualification.
Published on Apr 14, 2026
Twenty-one games into this edition of the Indian Premier League, and not once had a…
![Sridharan Sriram: “They’ve got a very good understanding” as CSK spin duo clicks; Southee backs struggling KKR For the first time since April 2024, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) was able to register two consecutive wins in the Indian Premier League (IPL).The Ruturaj Gaikwad-led team secured a 32-run win over last-placed Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to move to eighth on the points table, surpassing fellow five-time champion Mumbai Indians.At the heart of the victory were two spinners, Noor Ahmad and Akeal Hosein, who shared four wickets between them. In their eight-over quota, they conceded just 56 runs and picked up wickets at regular intervals to derail the KKR batting unit.Their ability to complement each other, coupled with inputs from former skipper M.S. Dhoni, fuelled the game-defining performance, feels CSK’s assistant bowling coach Sridharan Sriram.“They both communicate well, and they’ve got a very good understanding. I think today [Tuesday], Akeal was the one who went and told Noor about the length that he needed to bowl. Noor bowled a bit short in the first over, but once he found that in-between length, he was unplayable,” he said in the post-match press conference.“Even MS (Dhoni) had a long chat with him (Noor), asking him to bowl more leg breaks. It was really helpful today, and the results were there to show,” he added.One glaring issue in an otherwise perfect night for the home side was the number of catches dropped. Sunil Narine, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, and Ajinkya Rahane were all given extra lives. However, they were unable to capitalise on those chances.“It is something that the fielding coach will definitely address. I think in the last game we set really high standards. So one or two misses are bound to happen, but I think we’ll bounce back,” Sriram said.Reposing faithOn the flip side, problems persist for KKR, which is languishing at the bottom of the table. One such issue that needs immediate attention is the lack of contribution from Cameron Green. With the ball, he conceded 30 in two overs, and in the chase, fell to Noor Ahmad off the very first ball.“He hasn’t performed the way he would’ve wanted, yes. But he’s a quality player, and I think he didn’t play a lot of cricket leading into the IPL. Yeah, but of all people, he would be disappointed with himself. I’m sure he’ll bounce back at some stage this season,” said Tim Southee, KKR’s bowling coach.Adding to the team’s woes, its frontline spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has failed to make an impact so far. After conceding over 12 runs per over in the previous two games, Varun was able to control the damage, going for just over 26 runs in three overs.“If you look at Varun’s record in the IPL, it’s unbelievable. When you have a record like that and have a rough outing, there will be a lot of outside noise. But looking at the success he’s had with Kolkata and India, I think he will bounce back,” Southee said.Published on Apr 15, 2026 #Sridharan #Sriram #Theyve #good #understanding #CSK #spin #duo #clicks #Southee #backs #struggling #KKR](https://i1.wp.com/ss-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/4j790v/article70863916.ece/alternates/LANDSCAPE_1200/TH15-LEAD-CSK-KGEDFRQP9F.3.jpg.jpg?ssl=1 "Sridharan Sriram: “They’ve got a very good understanding” as CSK spin duo clicks; Southee backs struggling KKR For the first time since April 2024, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) was able to register two consecutive wins in the Indian Premier League (IPL).The Ruturaj Gaikwad-led team secured a 32-run win over last-placed Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to move to eighth on the points table, surpassing fellow five-time champion Mumbai Indians.At the heart of the victory were two spinners, Noor Ahmad and Akeal Hosein, who shared four wickets between them. In their eight-over quota, they conceded just 56 runs and picked up wickets at regular intervals to derail the KKR batting unit.Their ability to complement each other, coupled with inputs from former skipper M.S. Dhoni, fuelled the game-defining performance, feels CSK’s assistant bowling coach Sridharan Sriram.“They both communicate well, and they’ve got a very good understanding. I think today [Tuesday], Akeal was the one who went and told Noor about the length that he needed to bowl. Noor bowled a bit short in the first over, but once he found that in-between length, he was unplayable,” he said in the post-match press conference.“Even MS (Dhoni) had a long chat with him (Noor), asking him to bowl more leg breaks. It was really helpful today, and the results were there to show,” he added.One glaring issue in an otherwise perfect night for the home side was the number of catches dropped. Sunil Narine, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, and Ajinkya Rahane were all given extra lives. However, they were unable to capitalise on those chances.“It is something that the fielding coach will definitely address. I think in the last game we set really high standards. So one or two misses are bound to happen, but I think we’ll bounce back,” Sriram said.Reposing faithOn the flip side, problems persist for KKR, which is languishing at the bottom of the table. One such issue that needs immediate attention is the lack of contribution from Cameron Green. With the ball, he conceded 30 in two overs, and in the chase, fell to Noor Ahmad off the very first ball.“He hasn’t performed the way he would’ve wanted, yes. But he’s a quality player, and I think he didn’t play a lot of cricket leading into the IPL. Yeah, but of all people, he would be disappointed with himself. I’m sure he’ll bounce back at some stage this season,” said Tim Southee, KKR’s bowling coach.Adding to the team’s woes, its frontline spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has failed to make an impact so far. After conceding over 12 runs per over in the previous two games, Varun was able to control the damage, going for just over 26 runs in three overs.“If you look at Varun’s record in the IPL, it’s unbelievable. When you have a record like that and have a rough outing, there will be a lot of outside noise. But looking at the success he’s had with Kolkata and India, I think he will bounce back,” Southee said.Published on Apr 15, 2026 #Sridharan #Sriram #Theyve #good #understanding #CSK #spin #duo #clicks #Southee #backs #struggling #KKR")
