Sanju Samson, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) wicketkeeper-batter etched his name into Indian Premier League (IPL)record books after breaking MS Dhoni’s long-standing during the high-stakes clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Monday, May 18.
During his quickfire knock (27 off 11 balls), Samson broke Dhoni’s long-standing, 13-year-old record for the most runs scored by a CSK wicketkeeper in a single IPL season.
Going into the high-octane clash at Chepauk, Samson needed just 12 runs to surpass the legendary former captain’s tally of 461 runs, which Dhoni had set during the IPL 2013 season.
Samson wasted absolutely no time chasing down the milestone. Opening the batting for Chennai, he capitalized on an early free-hit from SRH’s Nitish Kumar Reddy, launching a massive six to get off the mark. He followed it up with two elegant boundaries, effortlessly racking up 15 runs in just 6 balls to comfortably claim the all-time franchise record. He ultimately played a blistering cameo, scoring 27 runs off just 13 deliveries.
With this knock, Samson’s tally for the season has risen to 477 runs across 13 innings, averaging an impressive 47.7 with a roaring strike rate touching nearly 166.
Surpassing A Legend
For over a decade, MS Dhoni’s 2013 season, where he scored 461 runs across 16 innings as a lower-order finisherstood as the gold standard for wicketkeeper-batters in Chennai.
While Dhoni masterminded chases from the lower-middle order, Samson’s role as an explosive top-order anchor has allowed him to unlock a new dimension for CSK.
Since moving to CSK in the mega trade deal ahead of the IPL 2026 season, the dynamic Kerala batter has been in scintillating form, already hammering two centuries – 115 off 56 balls* vs Delhi Capitals and 101 off 54 balls* vs Mumbai Indians.
Lineup For CSK vs SRH IPL 2026 Match
Sunrisers Hyderabad Playing XI: Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora, Smaran Ravichandran, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Pat Cummins(c), Shivang Kumar, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain, Praful Hinge
Chennai Super Kings Playing XI: Sanju Samson(w), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer, Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Spencer Johnson
Sunrisers Hyderabad Impact Subs: Travis Head, Aniket Verma, Liam Livingstone, Harsh Dubey, Harshal Patel
Chennai Super Kings Impact Subs: Mukesh Choudhary, Matthew Short, Sarfaraz Khan, Aman Khan, Gurjapneet Singh
