Fiery cameo! Sarfaraz wreaks havoc with 32 off 12

• CSK batter Sarfaraz Khan scored 32 off 12, boosting the team.
• Young Ayush Mhatre hit 73 off 43, aiding CSK’s strong innings.
• CSK posted 209 runs against PBKS at Chepauk; a rebound from prior loss.

Chennai Super Kings batter Sarfaraz Khan went all guns blazing and got his team to a stable side against Punjab Kings. The five-time champions were hosts to the Kings in the seventh game of the IPL 2026

on Friday, April 3, 2026. Coming off a blowout loss to the Rajasthan Royals in their season opener, the Kings wanted to avenge the defeat and open their win account at home.

The hosts got off to a disappointing start as Sanju Samson, who was making his home debut went pack to pavilion after seven runs. However, young lad Ayush Mhatre came in hot and put up a strong knock of 73 runs off 43 deliveries. He combined six boundaries and five maximums to put the team on a safer side. However, while skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad once again failed to put his batting prowess to use, Sarfaraz Khan came in and came up with 32 runs in just 12 deliveries. Khan combined six boundaries and one maximum at a strike rate of 266.67.

However, his knock came to an end in the 17th over when Nehal Wadhera caught him out off a Vijaykumar Vyshak delivery.

Chennai Super Kings post 209 runs against PBKS

Chennai Super Kings, who were bundled out 127 against the Royals in their season-opening clash, managed to cross the 200-run mark at home, Chepauk against the Punjab Kings. While Samson had to face another failure, Mhatre, after taking a few deliveries to settle in, soon took the driving seat. He, along with skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, pulled off a 96-run stand for the second wicket.

However, Punjab soon made their way back into the game by removing both the players in successive overs but Khan’s fresh cameo came in as a lifeline for the Gaikwad-led side. Shivam Dube and Prashant Veer remained not out at 45-off-27 and 6-off-7, respectively.