Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad finally broke free from the shackles of poor form as he slammed his first half-century of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026). However, his slow-paced knock puts him on an unwanted list of players who have scored the slowest fifty in IPL and for CSK as well. Gaikwad took 49 deliveries to reach his half-century and only manage to accelerate after he went past the mark.
Gaikwad scores one of IPL’s slowest fifties
Gaikwad got off to the slowest possible start in the game against the Gujarat Titans (GT), and was extremely slow till the 15th over. He took 49 balls to reach his half-century. However, he flipped the switch in the last five overs and finished with 74 runs to his name from 60 balls, striking 6 fours and 4 sixes at a strike rate of 123.33. Gaikwad’s 49-ball fifty is the 7th slowest in the history of IPL, with JP Duminy topping the list, having taken 55 deliveries to reach his half-century.
| Rank | Player | Balls |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | JP Duminy | 55 |
| 2 | Parthiv Patel | 53 |
| 3 | JP Duminy | 52 |
| 4 | David Warner | 50 |
| 5 | Gautam Gambhir | 50 |
| 6 | Sachin Tendulkar | 49 |
| 7 | Ruturaj Gaikwad | 49 |
| 8 | Murali Vijay | 48 |
| 9 | Ajinkya Rahane | 48 |
| 10 | Robin Uthappa | 47 |
| 11 | Ambati Rayudu | 47 |
Gaikwad also scored the 6th slowest fifty for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL.
| Balls | Player | vs Team | Venue | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | Parthiv Patel | PBKS | Chennai | 2010 |
| 51 | Matthew Hayden | MI | Gqeberha | 2009 |
| 50 | Murali Vijay | PBKS | Mohali | 2013 |
| 49 | Murali Vijay | RR | Jaipur | 2013 |
| 49 | Dwayne Smith | MI | Wankhede | 2014 |
| 49 | Ruturaj Gaikwad | GT | Chennai | 2026 |
What happened in CSK vs GT match?
CSK were asked to bat first after Ruturaj Gaikwad lost the toss in Chennai on Sunday. The team got off to a horrible start, losing three wickets in the powerplay. Sanju Samson (11 off 15), Urvil Patel (4 off 2) and Sarfaraz Khan (0 off 1) perished within the first 6 overs as the hosts managed to get to just 28/3 at the end of the powerplay. Things did not improve much in the next five overs as well, as the hosts clocked 43/4 at the end of 10 overs.
While their slow-paced innings continued, Gaikwad and Shivam Dube (22) managed to steady the ship for CSK with a 59-run partnership. But Dube largely survived for that long only because he was dropped by Sai Sudharsan, Mohammed Siraj and Jos Buttler. The Super Kings flipped the switch in the last five overs, with handy cameos from Kartik Sharma (15 off 9) and Jamie Overton (18 off 6) helping in the cause. Eventually, CSK managed to reach 158/7 at the end of the innings, managing to post a face saving total for the five-time champions.
