Sanju Samson could not replicate his stunning century against Gujarat Titans in the IPL 2026 on Saturday, yet he reached a momentous milestone. The Chennai Super Kings opener, who slammed an unbeaten 101 against Mumbai Indians in the previous match, was out for 11 against GT. However, with a boundary off the second ball of the second over bowled by Kagiso Rabada, he completed 5,000 runs in the IPL.
Samson took 3,555 balls to reach the milestone. He is the third-fastest to do so, after AB de Villiers (3,288 balls) and David Warner (3,554 balls). He is the quickest among Indians to reach the landmark.
Fewest balls to 5,000 IPL runs
3288 – AB de Villiers
3554 – D Warner
3555 – S Samson
3620 – S Raina
3688 – KL Rahul
3691 – MS Dhoni
Gujarat Titans won the toss and elected to bowl against hosts Chennai Super Kings in the 37th fixture of the IPL 2026 at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, the first match of Sunday’s double-header.
At the halfway stage of the tournament, both CSK and GT are evenly placed with three wins and four losses from seven matches, making this clash important for momentum and standings.
CSK head into the game high on confidence after a dominant win over Mumbai Indians, powered by Sanju Samson’s unbeaten 101 and a four-wicket haul from Akeal Hosein. Back at Chepauk, where they have won two of three matches, CSK will look to continue their strong home form.
In contrast, GT are under pressure after back-to-back losses to MI and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, despite a century from Sai Sudharsan. While their bowling remains a strength, concerns over an inconsistent middle order persist as they aim to regain form.
Winning the toss, GT skipper Shubman Gill said,
“We’re going to bowl first. It looks like a good wicket. On a surface like this, it’s good to have a total on the board. The heat isn’t that bad, and there’s a good bit of breeze, so hopefully it won’t be too tough on our bowlers.
“We’re doing a lot of things right; it’s just about winning the small moments. In bowling, when we leak runs, we give away too many in a three- to four-over period. It’s about hitting the right length consistently in the middle overs.
“Honestly, if the wicket is nice in the powerplay, the talk is to get 70-80 runs, or as many as possible, but it’s important to assess conditions. If it’s a 170-180 wicket, you have to adjust accordingly. At the end of the day, it’s important to play the conditions rather than focus on what hasn’t happened. One change: Arshad is coming back into the squad.”
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