The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) play their final group stage game of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) when they travel to the Narendra Modi Stadium to take on the Gujarat Titans in Match 66 on Thursday, 21.
The five-time champions come into the game knowing that not only do they need a commanding victory against the Titans, but they will also need a host of other results to go their way to book a playoff berth.
CSK have fallen short of expectations in recent matches, losing back-to-back matches.
Jamie Overton’s absence is felt dearly, with captain Ruturaj Gaikwad’s form also coming under scrutiny. Their side, however, has quality up and down the order to challenge the hosts at the venue where they won the 2023 title.
Here is CSK’s strongest predicted XI vs GT, Match 66, IPL 2026:
Top Order: Sanju Samson (WK), Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Urvil Patel
Sanju Samson has led CSK’s top-order throughout the 2026 season, top-scoring with 477 runs at a strike-rate of 166.20. In his first campaign, donning the iconic yellow jersey, the right-hander has two centuries to his name.
Ruturaj Gaikwad, however, has struggled to find consistent form, averaging less than 30 whilst striking at a mere 120.67.
Urvil Patel scored IPL’s joint-fastest half-century against LSG, but has since had two underwhelming scores.
Middle Order: Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer
Runs have been hard to come by for CSK’s middle order this season. Kartik Sharma, who could be named amongst the Impact Subs, has been one of their leading run-getters with 276 runs from 10 innings.
Shivam Dube has played some crucial innings towards the end, striking at 145.75. Dewald Brevis, however, has been disappointing based on his form from last season. The South Africa international has scored fewer runs than the injured Ayush Mhatre and out-of-favour Sarfaraz Khan.
Bowlers: Akeal Hosein, Anshul Kamboj, Spencer Johnson, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary
Anshul Kamboj has been leading the bowling department for CSK this season, having taken 20 wickets from 13 matches. Noor Ahmad, meanwhile, has 13 scalps to his name, with an economy rate of just 8.06.
The Super Kings have opted to go with Spencer Johnson as a direct replacement for the injured Jamie Overton. The Australian has huge boots to fill, with Overton ending his stint with 14 wickets at an average of 17.78.
CSK’s predicted playing XI vs GT in Match 66, IPL 2026:
Sanju Samson (WK), Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer, Akeal Hosein, Anshul Kamboj, Spencer Johnson, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary
Impact Player: Kartik Sharma
