Sarfaraz Khan has an old habit of stealing the show at Chinnaswamy. His shot at fame came in 2015, when his famous 45 not-out helped Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) post 200/7 in a washed-out affair, at Chinnaswamy. After 11 years, Sarfaraz returned to the venue and registered his second-highest IPL score, but this time, it was against RCB.
In reply to RCB‘s record total of 250/3, in IPL history, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) endured a shaky start. Their top three batters – Sanju Samson, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ayush Mhatre – scored 17 runs combined. And that’s when Sarfaraz took the matter in hands and smashed a half-century at a strike rate over 200.
CSK cruised from 30/3 to 77/3 in 19 balls, riding on Sarfaraz‘s knock. Whereas his innings set a unique
milestone in the IPL. He became the first batter to get to a half-century within the first six overs of an IPL innings while batting at No.4 or lower.
Sarfaraz’s fifty against RCB was his second in his career, and the first since his maiden half-century, which came for Punjab Kings on April 6, 2019. The right-hander scored a fifty exactly after 2,556 days, on April 5, 2026. He, thus, became the joint-second on the list of batters to have taken the longest time between two IPL fifties.
Longest Time Taken Between Two IPL Fifties
| Player | Time Taken b/w 2 IPL Fifties | Dates Between |
| Krunal Pandya | 3,269 days | 16 May 2016 to 26 April 2025 |
| Sarfaraz Khan | 2,556 days | 6 April 6, 2019, and 5 April, 2026 |
| Karun Nair | 2,520 days | 21 May 2018 to 12 April 2025 |
| Travis Head | 2,516 days | 8 May 2017 to 26 March 2024 |
| Wriddihiman Saha | 2,191 days | 4 May 2008 to 2 May 2014 |
| Dwayne Bravo | 2,168 days | 13 May 2009 to 18 April 2015 |
Earlier, Tim David, Rajat Patidar and Devdutt Padikkal powered Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a massive 250/3 against Chennai Super Kings on Sunday.
Padikkal (50) and Phil Salt (46) laid the base before Patidar (48*), and David (70*) unleashed a late assault. After a steady start, Padikkal shifted gears, helping RCB surge past 150 by the 15th over. The hosts then smashed 97 runs in the final five overs, with David and Patidar stitching an unbeaten 99-run stand. CSK bowlers struggled at the death as RCB dominated at the Chinnaswamy.
(With Agency Inputs)
