IPL 2026: Urvil Patel Helps Chennai Super Kings Beat LSG By 5 Wickets

Chennai: Hailing from Gujarat’s diamond city of Palanpur, Urvil Patel on Sunday delivered an innings that sparkled like a precious gem. His explosive 65 off 23 balls, studded with eight towering sixes, powered Chennai Super Kings to their first successful chase of a 200-plus target since the 2018 IPL final. The five-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium significantly boosted CSK’s playoff ambitions with 12 points in 11 games.

CSK’s pursuit of 203 began in blazing fashion with Sanju Samson setting the tone through a brisk 28 off 14 deliveries. But it was Urvil Patel who unleashed absolute carnage. After taking a single off his very first ball, Urvil produced one of the most destructive passages of batting seen this season. Over the next seven deliveries he faced, he hammered six sixes and a boundary, dismantling the Lucknow attack with fearless strokeplay. Spanning two overs, he smashed five consecutive sixes before racing to a breathtaking half-century in just 13 balls — equalling the fastest fifty in IPL history by Yashasvi Jaiswal.

All eight of Urvil’s sixes were struck into the leg side, with the 27-year-old repeatedly targeting the midwicket region. He took apart pacer Avesh Khan and spinner Digvesh Rathi, clobbering three sixes each off the duo. Although Digvesh dropped him on 63, the reprieve proved short-lived as Urvil eventually fell for 65. By then, Urvil and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad stitched together an astounding 81-run partnership off just 34 balls, completely shifting the momentum in CSK’s favour.

By the end of the powerplay, Chennai had stormed to 97 for one — the highest powerplay score ever recorded at Chepauk, surpassing Lucknow’s first-innings effort earlier in the evening. At the halfway mark, CSK were cruising at 131 for two, requiring just 73 runs from the final 60 deliveries. When skipper Ruturaj eventually departed after a vital 42 off 28 balls, CSK needed only 55 runs from 44 balls, firmly in control of the chase. But back-to-back dismissals of Dewald Brevis and Kartik Sharma made it a nail-biter. CSK needed 30 in the last three overs and 10 off the final over. Shivam Dube finished off in style with two consecutive sixes.

Earlier, a spirited bowling effort from the trio of Noor Ahmad (1/24, including 10 dot balls), Jamie Overton (3/36) and Anshul Kamboj (2/47) sparked CSK’s comeback after Lucknow threatened to post a massive total through a blazing start in the powerplay. What initially looked destined to become a 250-plus total after LSG stormed to 91 runs in the first six overs was eventually pulled back to 203 for eight.

Lucknow came out all guns blazing as Josh Inglis tore into the attack, smashing three successive boundaries — including a towering six — off spinner Akeal Hosein in the opening over. Inglis was at his audacious best against pacer Mukesh Choudhary, repeatedly executing the reverse lap to perfection. He played the shot three times, with two sailing over the ropes, leaving the CSK bowlers stunned. Lucknow raced to 56 without loss in just four overs, with Inglis bringing up a breathtaking half-century in only 17 deliveries.

The momentum shifted dramatically once Noor Ahmad was introduced in the seventh over. The left-arm spinner delivered a superb opening over, conceding just three runs while removing the dangerous Nicholas Pooran. LSG crossed the 100-run mark in 7.4 overs, but what followed was a dramatic collapse. From a commanding 91 for one at the end of the powerplay, Lucknow slumped to 130 for five in 12.1 overs.