New Delhi: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) bowlers strangled Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the death to secure a thrilling 10-run victory for the hosts at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad, in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 on Saturday, April 18. Ehsan Malinga starred with the ball, bagging a three-wicket haul to help SRH take the game away from CSK during their run chase.

An inspired Malinga led from the front as SRH bowlers produced a brilliant combined effort to restrict CSK to 184/8 while defending 195 at their home ground. The Ishan Kishan-led side broke into the top four with the win, their third of the season, while CSK slipped to their fourth defeat in six matches in IPL 2026 as they hit a roadblock again after back-to-back wins.

It was a dismal batting performance from the five-time champions, who failed to find a spark in the 195-run chase after the dismissal of 18-year-old Ayush Mhatre, who was the only CSK batter who looked at ease en route to his 13-ball 30. The likes of Sanju Samson, Matthew Short, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube and Dewald Brevis all failed to deliver as CSK fell short in the end.

CSK got off to a shaky start in the chase, losing Samson cheaply on 7 in the second over. However, Mhatre arrived at no.3 and provided impetus to the innings with his blazing start. He helped CSK capitalise in the Powerplay with his quickfire 30 alongside captain Gaikwad, whose awful run continued with 19 off just 13 balls.

Mhatre suffered a hamstring injury but decided to continue batting before eventually getting caught by Heinrich Klaasen off Nitish Reddy’s bowling in the 5th over. The 18-year-old looked in pain as he limped off the ground, adding to his side’s injury woes this season.

His dismissal proved to be fatal for the five-time champions as they lost momentum in the run chase. Sarfaraz Khan (25) added 46 runs for the 5th wicket with Short, who was sent to bat at no.4, but the duo never looked in control of the run chase. After dismissing Gaikwad, Malinga got rid of Sarfaraz in the 11th over to leave CSK in a spot of bother at 112/4.

Spinner Shivang Kumar struck in the next to dismiss Dewlad Brevis on a duck, piling pressure on the visitors. Short (34 off 30) and Dube (21 off 16) tried hard but struggled to keep up with the required run rate, which eventually proved too much in the end. Jamie Overton (16 off 15) could do little against SRH bowlers’ disciplined line and length in the death overs as CSK were restricted to 184/8 in the run chase.