IPL 2025: A listless CSK loses to DC for the first time at home since 2010 by 25 runs

CHENNAI: Delhi Capitals (DC) extended its unbeaten streak to three matches with a commanding 25-run win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at Chepauk on Saturday, riding on KL Rahul’s classy 77 and a disciplined bowling display led by Vipraj Nigam.

For the second time this season, an away team which hasn’t won at Chepauk for more than a decade, 15 years to be precise, has managed to breach the fortress and suddenly CSK finds itself in a predicament with just one win in its bag out of four matches.

And chasing anything in excess of 180 or more still continues to be its bugbear with this being the tenth consecutive loss and you should go back all the way to 2019 for the last time it successfully chased down beyond 180.

Meanwhile, DC is having a dream start to its 2025 campaign winning three out of three under new captain Axar Patel and head coach Hemang Badani.

Opting to bat first, DC’s start was shaky as Khaleel Ahmed struck early, removing Jake Fraser-McGurk in the very first over. But what followed was a spirited counter-attack by Abishek Porel.

The left-hander took on Mukesh Choudhary, who played his first game this season.

Porel’s cameo (33 off 20) was short-lived, falling to Jadeja while attempting a cut shot that found Matheesha Pathirana at short third. But the platform was set, and Rahul seized the moment. With an elegant blend of drives and flicks, Rahul anchored the innings, pacing his fifty in 33 balls on a dry, two-paced surface.

He didn’t miss the slot deliveries bowled by CSK’s main weapons Noor Ahmad, Pathirana and Ravindra Jadeja in the middle overs.

Khaleel once again came to the rescue as he broke the 56-run partnership between Rahul and Sameer Rizvi just off the first ball after timeout.

CSK, meanwhile, unravelled in the powerplay — a worrying trend this season. The top order crumbled once again, reduced to 46/3 in the first six. Mukesh Kumar dismissed Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Starc got Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Vipraj Nigam’s smart googly outfoxed comeback man Devon Conway.

Shivam Dube tried to push the scoring, but he too fell to Nigam just after hitting him for a six. Nigam bowled an impressive spell of 2/27.

Vijay Shankar rode his luck — dropped twice — but couldn’t convert. Although he scored his career-best score of an unbeaten 69, it took him 54 balls to get there. For the first 31 deliveries, he only managed to score one boundary. He did try to swing the bat whenever he could, but he had great difficulty finding the gap.

While MS Dhoni walked into bat at No 7 with nine overs remaining, he too only managed to score 30 off 26 balls (1x4, 1x6).

Brief scores: Delhi Capitals 183/6 in 20 overs (KL Rahul 77, Abhishek Porel 33, K Ahmed 2/25) bt Chennai Super Kings 158/5 in 20 overs (Vijay Shankar 69*, MS Dhoni 30*)