- Chennai Super Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 52 runs at Chepauk in IPL 2026
- CSK make it back to back wins with strong home form under Ruturaj Gaikwad
- Solid start from Sanju Samson and Ayush Mhatre sets up dominant CSK victory
The Chennai Super Kings rolled back the years at Chepauk to secure a 52-run victory against the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2026.
Ruturaj Gaikwad and Co came into the game on the back of a strong performance against the Delhi Capitals and made it two wins from two in front of a rapturous home crowd.
Read the full scorecard here.
CSK vs KKR IPL 2026 – where the game was won
After Ajinkya Rahane opted to field first, CSK made a strong start despite losing Ruturaj Gaikwad early, with Sanju Samson and Ayush Mhatre capitalising in the powerplay.
CSK then faltered at the back end of their innings, but their total of 192 still looked slightly above par, especially with KKR’s spinners extracting significant assistance from a surface that proved tricky for batting.
It was scorching hot in Chennai and the dew made it difficult for the likes of Noor Ahmad and Akeal Hossein to grip the ball. But the CSK spinners bowled unbelievably well on the night to heap misery on a KKR side that simply hasn’t got going this season.
Between the conditions at Chepauk, Ruturaj’s captaincy and Cameron Green’s failures, it’s safe to say the game produced talking points aplenty.
KKR have problems across the pitch
The elephant in the room is obviously Cameron Green, who has been one of the biggest disappointments of IPL 2026 so far.
KKR threw the kitchen sink at him in the mini-auction and signed him for an eye-watering sum, with the Australian tasked with replacing a certain Andre Russell for the three-time IPL champions.
Those are obviously big shoes to fill, but Green has failed to get going this season and fell for a golden duck at Chepauk after Noor produced an absolute peach on his way to a Man of the Match performance.
Cricket Australia didn’t grant him an NOC to bowl for KKR in the first two games, while their third game was a wash-out. Against LSG, Green dismissed Rishabh Pant but was picked apart by Mukul Choudhary at the death, representing another poor day at the office.
Cameron Green under pressure as struggles continue
He didn’t bowl against CSK and didn’t trouble the scores with the bat, which is a clear sign that he looks out of sorts. It makes no sense for KKR to bite the bullet and relegate him to the bench, but it also goes without saying that Green doesn’t really merit a place in the team and is only playing due to the lack of better options.
Elsewhere, Vaibhav Arora leaked runs again with the ball, while Rinku Singh’s form lower down the order is a huge cause for concern. CSK and KKR have produced some thrilling encounters over the years, but on Tuesday, there was never a point where the game went beyond the grasp of the home side as they secured two points rather comfortably.
The only silver lining for KKR from the game was Kartik Tyagi’s spell. Once seen as an elite pace-bowling talent, he looks like he’s finally coming of age after a few years in the doldrums, as he finished with 2-35 with the wickets of Samson and Dewald Brevis.
Sunil Narine also bowled well and that’s obviously a positive, but on such a wicket, his delivering the goods was almost a foregone conclusion and something KKR have been used to over the years.
CSK vs KKR IPL 2026 – tactical calls at Chepauk
For the game against DC, CSK started with three overseas players and used Akeal Hossein as their impact player. He bowled two up front and went for 20 runs, but cramped the batters for room with six dot balls.
And needless to say, he was expected to do the same against KKR as the Chepauk faithful expected Rahane and Finn Allen to open the innings.
However, the away side threw a spanner into the works by opting to promote Sunil Narine alongside the Kiwi. Using Akeal up top would have given his compatriot a favourable match-up since he’s a left-hander, but Ruturaj adapted as the likes of Khaleel Ahmed and Anshul Kamboj did most of the heavy lifting in the power play.
Akeal, meanwhile, bowled in tandem with Noor to stifle KKR in the middle overs, as was the case with the legendary CSK teams of the past with MS Dhoni at the helm.
The former Indian captain used Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin in the middle phase to defend plenty of targets back in the day. And judging by how Ruturaj used his spinners, it appears as if he is taking a leaf out of his predecessor’s notebook.
After losing their first three games rather comfortably, Ruturaj has done well with his team combination and field placements. His batting is obviously a big issue, but we’ll get to it shortly.
Ayush Mhatre is CSK’s x-factor
The 2025 IPL season was the worst in CSK’s decorated history as they finished rock bottom.
However, towards the back end of the season, the emergence of a handful of young players breathed new life into the team, none more so than Ayush Mhatre.
After Gaikwad’s elbow injury ruled him out of the tournament, Chennai drafted in the then-17-year-old as his replacement to provide an impetus up top.
And he did just that with a string of eye-catching knocks to give the five-time IPL champions a glimpse into the future. IPL 2026 was always going to be tricky for the youngster, especially after Samson’s arrival as the former Rajasthan Royals skipper would take his opening slot.
There was also a lot of chatter about second-season syndrome, but if the first five games are anything to go by, the young batter has already proved that he is here for the long haul.
He walked in during the power play again after Ruturaj fell cheaply and took the attack to the KKR bowlers alongside Samson.
CSK were 72/2 when the field restrictions were lifted, thanks to Mhatre’s 17-ball 38, allowing the rest of the batters to take their time on a slightly difficult wicket.
With Ruturaj misfiring and Mhatre looking in ominous touch, maybe it’s time for the Super Kings to swap their batting positions to maximise their output during the power play.
CSK’s bowling attack clicking into gear
Against DC, Jamie Overton was the star of the show at Chepauk as he bowled some hard, test-match lengths to finish with 4-18. With Matt Henry relegated to the bench, Gurjapneet Singh came into the XI and also bowled quite well to spearhead CSK to their first win of the season.
Against KKR, it was more of the same as Khaleel and Kamboj set the tone in the power play.
In fact, Kamboj’s development has been a big plus for CSK this season as the former Mumbai Indians bowler has quickly become their designated death bowler.
Tim David took him apart at the Chinnaswami, but apart from that, he has been magnificent and was at it once again against KKR.
CSK’s current combination has given Ruturaj a wealth of bowling options and he has used them quite well over the last two games. However, their lack of a designated finisher has come to the fore over the last two games as their run rate dropped massively towards the back end against both DC and KKR.
They won’t mind it too much, though, as they are up and running in IPL 2026 with two clinical home wins. And more importantly, Chepauk seems to have founds it’s voice again as the atmosphere in the opening game against the Punjab Kings was drab, to say the least.
Is there space for MS Dhoni in the team?
MS Dhoni hasn’t featured for CSK this season due to a calf strain. In fact, he hasn’t been spotted at Chepauk for any of their three home games. Knowing how he operates, he probably wants his team to function without his shadow lurking in the background.
However, reports suggest he could return for the clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad later this week, potentially giving CSK a selection headache or two.
As we mentioned earlier, the Super Kings are crying out for a finisher and who better than a man who has been there and done it several times for club and country over the years?
That said, this won’t be an easy decision for the think tank as they’ll refrain from chopping and changing a squad that seems to be slowly clicking into gear.
Dhoni wasn’t at the ground yesterday, but his name rang around Chepauk as the fans called for their favourite son to return to action.
This is a problem CSK will relish having, though. A week ago, they were staring down the barrel, wondering how they’d buy themselves a win. Five days later, they’ve racked up four points on the board and Chepauk has founds it’s voice again after six successive IPL defeats in the venue.
And now, suddenly, things are looking a lot better for the five-time IPL champions, while KKR will go back to the drawing board and rethink their team composition after another sobering defeat.
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