Star batter KL Rahul led the charge with class and confidence, guiding Delhi Capitals to a convincing 25-run victory against the Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium – our first win at the iconic venue since 2010.
His elegant knock laid the foundation for a competitive total of 183/6 in the first innings, setting the tone for an all-round team performance that culminated in a convincing victory.
Earlier in the day, our skipper Axar Patel won the toss and chose to bat first. With vice-captain and opening batter Faf du Plessis unavailable for today’s match, Sameer Rizvi was recalled to the playing XI.
Batting first, we faced an early setback with the dismissal of Jake Fraser-McGurk on the fifth ball of the match. However, KL Rahul, who opened in place of du Plessis, partnered with Abishek Porel to stabilise the innings. Porel, showing positive intent, took on CSK’s Mukesh Choudhary early, scoring 19 runs off his over to shift the momentum back in our favour.
Rahul soon hit his first six off Khaleel Ahmed to get in the rhythm as the duo brought up a 50-partnership inside the Powerplay. The stand was eventually broken by a soft dismissal, with Porel departing after a well-compiled 33 off 20.
Next, Axar came in to bat at No.4 and made an immediate impact, hitting a six off his first ball. The skipper chipped in with a delightful cameo of 21 from 14 to up the scoring rate.
Meanwhile, Rahul assessed the conditions well and brought up a well-made half-century, his first for the Delhi Capitals. He went on to top-score with a composed 77 off 51 deliveries before being dismissed in the 19th over.
Supporting him in the latter stages were Tristan Stubbs (24* off 12) and Sameer Rizvi (20 off 15), whose valuable contributions helped propel the team beyond the 180-run mark.
After the break, Mukesh Kumar walked in as the Impact Sub and straightaway got the big wicket of Rachin Ravindra. He was soon complemented by Mitchell Starc, who struck early to dismiss CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad for just five runs.
Axar made a strategic decision to bring Vipraj Nigam into the Powerplay and it worked out brilliantly. Devon Conway attempted to clear the mid-wicket boundary, but a top edge resulted in a comfortable catch for Axar himself at extra cover.
Losing three wickets in the Powerplay put the home team on the back foot and our bowlers maintained control throughout the innings, ensuring we stayed firmly in command. Vipraj contributed with another crucial breakthrough, dismissing Shivam Dube and finishing with figures of 2/27.
Kuldeep Yadav continued his golden run of form, chipping in with another economical spell and claiming the crucial wicket of Ravindra Jadeja. While MS Dhoni and Vijay Shankar steadied the innings with a late partnership, our bowlers maintained discipline and precision throughout, leaving no room for error.
We emerged victorious by 25 runs, making it three wins in three matches in TATA IPL 2025. Next, we travel to Bengaluru for our upcoming fixture against Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 10.
Brief Scores
Delhi Capitals 183/6 in 20 overs (KL Rahul 77, Abishek Porel 33, Tristan Stubbs 24) beat Chennai Super Kings 158/5 in 20 overs (Vijay Shankar 69; Vipraj Nigam 2/27, Mitchell Starc 1/27)
Player of the Match: KL Rahul
