Mumbai Indians (MI) were outplayed by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, April 23.
The hosts won the toss and opted to field first. Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sanju Samson added 32 runs inside three overs before the former was dismissed by AM Ghazanfar. Sarfaraz Khan showed great intent during his eight-ball stay, contributing 14 runs. However, he failed to capitalise on his promising start.
Shivam Dube walked out to bat at No. 4 and was expected to take on the Ghazanfar-Santner duo. However, the Afghanistan spinner got the better of him before he could make a mark. Samson anchored the innings, forging crucial partnerships with Dewald Brevis, Kartik Sharma, Jamie Overton, and Akeal Hosein.
The 31-year-old finished unbeaten on 101 off 54 balls, his second century this season. He smashed 10 fours and six sixes, helping the visitors finish on 207/6.
In reply, Mumbai Indians lost three wickets inside the first three overs as Akeal Hosein and Mukul Choudhary wreaked havoc. Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma tried to weather the storm, as they added 73 runs off 56 balls. However, the CSK bowlers, led by Akeal, bounced back through the middle overs and took the last seven wickets for just 20 runs.
The stunning collapse meant that Mumbai were bowled out for 104 in 19 overs, losing the match by a whopping 103 runs. Akeal was the star of the show, finishing with figures of 4/17 in four overs.
1. Sanju Samson stands tall at the Wankhede
Sanju Samson showed tremendous maturity on Thursday. He was hitting the ball wonderfully well, but once he saw that the other batters around him were not matching up to him, he dropped a gear and focused on batting deep into the innings. However, he found the boundary every time Mumbai were looking to build some pressure. In the end, the wicketkeeper-batter finished on 101 off 54 balls, hitting 10 fours and six sixes.
2. Akeal Hosein stuns home fans
Akeal Hosein, playing just his fourth IPL game, bowled a magical spell at the Wankhede Stadium. He took two wickets with the new ball to break the back of Mumbai’s batting. With Mukesh also chipping in, the home side had a mountain to climb. When Suryakumar and Tilak did the grinding and were looking to shift gears, Akeal came back and sent both of them back to the hut. Akeal’s combination with Noor Ahmad, who bagged two wickets, could win CSK many more matches down the line.
3. Captain Hardik Pandya disappoints yet again
Hardik Pandya won the toss, but since that moment, nothing went his way. He shared the new ball with Jasprit Bumrah. However, his two overs leaked 38 runs. With the bat, Hardik walked out after the Tilak-Suryakumar partnership was broken in the 12th over. The home fans would have been hoping for some magic from their skipper. However, all the Baroda all-rounder could manage was one run off two balls.
MI vs CSK: Who Said What?
Hardik Pandya, MI captain
I think that in the powerplay, losing that early wicket is always going to be tricky. You are always chasing the game and we could not cope up after that. (Did the pitch change in any way?) I would not say that. I’m not someone who would like to say that. They batted well, they scored 207. It was the same track, it is the same soil. We should have just batted well. (The spinners got the ball to grip, didn’t they?) Yes, I think even our spinners bowled pretty well. It’s just that Sanju played an outstanding knock. At the same point of time, their batters kept coming and kind of chipping in and got them to a decent total. I think more than a decent total on that track. For us to chase this down, we needed to have a good powerplay and the momentum had to be with us, but that could not happen. (Will there be more personnel change in the upcoming games?) I think that will be the chat where we will go back to again, go forward and figure out what we need to do. We have a couple of days. We just need to see what we can do best.
Ruturaj Gaikwad, CSK captain
(On Mukesh Choudhary) Yes, pretty tough on him, I would definitely like to dedicate this win to him. Hats off to him, coming in from that sad situation, it takes a lot of effort mentally, and I think he came back for the team, came back for the franchise. He knew that we needed him, so definitely, all glory to him. And even we spoke before going into the bowling that we want to win this game for him. And I’m glad that everyone chipped it on and wanted to just be there for him. (On this win) Feels good. I was still 50-50 at the toss. My gut feeling was saying we should bat first. I thought it was a bit green, but at the same time, I felt it was a bit dry as well. Always, you have to assess in the first couple of overs. And me and Sanju, we said that it was not coming on nicely. So anywhere around 200-210 would be a really good score. And then Akeal coming in for bowling side, it helps a lot. So I think everyone just chipped in really well. Even those 20s from Brevis, from Kartik, really helped a lot. Just kept the momentum going. And, Sanju again played this magnificent knock, took us home again. And really thanks to him. He’s been in fantastic touch. And as I said, our bowling was improving since the first and second game. We have been doing really well. We have been trying to stay calm, do the basic things right. And I feel it’s just starting to click. (On the bowling attack) We’re kind of heading in a direction where we are trying to cover all the bases. Khaleel wasn’t available, but, Mukesh to start that first over, especially to Quinton, and I thought that really set the momentum. And even to bowl three overs in the powerplay to the likes of Surya and Tilak, he started off really well. Anshul is always doing well. And Jamie, whenever the wicket has some pace and bounce, Jamie and Gurjapneet are the ones who can take wickets for us in the middle as well. And you always have Noor and then always a blessing to have Akeal if we have an opportunity. So as I said, overall, everyone is getting in their roles. Everyone is settling and everyone is calm and composed and know what to do. (Next two games at home) Yes, we start from zero, start from assessing the pitch how it is. We’ve got a day game as well. Just couple of days and we’ve got a day game. So, make sure that we enjoy this win and keep it aside and make sure we are ready for the next one.
Sanju Samson, Player of the Match
(On his knock) Really feels great to score a century in Wankhede against MI. It’s definitely a special moment for me and the team. I have actually kept things very simple nowadays. I’m just looking at the conditions. Looking at the wicket today, it was not a normal Wankhede wicket. The ball was swinging around. The ball was holding a bit. From there I think assessing what the team demands and that gives you clarity. Right after the powerplay, I kind of knew what type of a wicket this is. We actually kept on losing wickets here and then. Whenever we wanted to go big, I think we were losing a few wickets. So I thought it’s very important for a settled batsman to stay till the end. So that’s what I tried and that’s what happened today. The game tells you what to do. You don’t have to come with a pre-conceived mindset or you don’t have to be a bit pre-meditating telling this is how I play or this is what I want to do. So with the experience which I have, I think definitely the team comes first. You can definitely say that this is the way I play. I think I can get out or I don’t get out. But the experience and the responsibility which is shown on me, so it is my responsibility to understand the game situation and what the team demands and put that first and then plan my game plan around it. So as I said, I definitely go with a very open mindset. But I think if we had wickets, if we didn’t have a lot of fall of wickets, then I would have gone a bit more earlier. So fall of wickets, it was very important for us to close off the innings really well. (Key to the batting going forward for CSK) As we all know, it’s a very young team. But the amount of attitude and character which we have shown, even after three losses in this tournament, I think the character which has been shown by the youngsters in the team is really commending. So we would like to just keep on going ahead with the momentum which we have received from here. But we know that every game is important. Every team comes up with the great intensity. So we need to be ready and enjoy what’s happening at the moment. (On CSK receiving a lot of support in Wankhede) I am wearing yellow for the first time. It’s all a bit very new for me. I think I have never seen yellow so much in Wankhede ever in my life. So I am very grateful to play for this franchise.
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