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Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad finally ended his lean patch with his first half-century of Indian Premier League 2026. His slow scoring performance resulted in him being included into two different lists which documented the slowest fifties ever achieved in IPL history and for Chennai Super Kings. He needed 49 balls to reach the milestone and only picked up pace after crossing it.

Gaikwad started his match against the Gujarat Titans by displaying a slow batting performance which lasted until the 15th over. He reached his fifty in 49 deliveries but shifted gears late in the innings. He achieved a total of 74 runs from 60 balls by hitting 6 fours and 4 sixes at a strike rate of 123.33. His 49-ball fifty now stands as the seventh slowest in IPL history, with JP Duminy holding the record after taking 55 balls.

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CSK batted first after Gaikwad lost the toss in Chennai on Sunday. The innings began poorly as Sanju Samson (11 off 15), Urvil Patel (4 off 2), and Sarfaraz Khan (0 off 1) fell inside the powerplay. The team limped to 28/3 in six overs and could only reach 43/4 by the 10th over.

Gaikwad and Shivam Dube (22) established control over the match through their 59-run partnership which followed the slow start of the innings. Dube received multiple chances to continue batting because Sai Sudharsan and Mohammed Siraj and Jos Buttler failed to catch him. CSK built up their power during the final five overs when Kartik Sharma (15 off 9) and Jamie Overton (18 off 6) delivered fast scoring. The five-time champions ended on 158/7 which resulted in them scoring a competitive score.