At a time when teams are regularly crossing the 200 mark and openers are scoring 180, 190 and even above, Rituraj Gaikwad It took 49 balls to reach his fifty against Gujarat Titans in the IPL 2026 match at Chepauk on Sunday. It became one of the slowest half-centuries. Chennai Super Kings The slowest in IPL history and the impact player era after 2023.Gaikwad remained not out after scoring 74 runs off 60 balls. A 74 not out can be valuable, or it can be the reason your team ends up 30 runs short. In Chepauk on Sunday, Gaekwad’s unbeaten 74 belonged firmly in the second category. Gaekwad’s IPL career strike rate is 136.24. This season, it has fallen further to 121.08.
Yes, wickets kept falling around him. But mere survival is not enough in T20 cricket. You are expected to control the game by attacking the bowlers, not just stay till the end.This is where Gaikwad’s innings becomes a problem.Because now in T20, where teams are regularly scoring 200 plus, and openers are scoring at strike rates of 180 and 190, fifty from 49 balls is not acceptable from an opener.This is not about disrespecting difficult situations. The Chepak pitch provided some help for the bowlers. Mohammad Siraj and Kagiso Rabada used it well with the new ball. The strokeplay was not easy and the batsmen had to adjust.But adjustment and shutdown are two different things.CSK lost wickets in power play. Sanju Samson scored 11 runs, Arul Patel scored 4 runs, Sarfaraz Khan scored 0 runs, Dewald Brews scored 2 runs.This is usually the point where the “anchor” argument enters: one has to stabilize the innings. But stability in T20 is not like ODI. You don’t have 50 overs to recover. If your reaction to early wickets is to reduce the threat enough to stop scoring runs, then the opposition has already won the game.Gaikwad went into surrender mode and CSK’s innings slowed down. CSK reached 50 in just the 12th over. Read it again. Fifty runs in 12 overs in an IPL season where 250 is no longer enough, PBKS only showed on Saturday.T20 cricket has changed. A batsman’s role is no longer just to stay in and bat. It’s about controlling the tempo, forcing bowling changes, and making every ball count. Throughout the IPL, teams are winning games because their top-order batsmen are attacking and driving the game. If your opener is still playing as if protection is the top priority, then the team is already chasing the game.Slowest IPL 50 for CSK in IPL
- 53 P Patel v. PBKS Chennai 2010
- 51 M Hayden v MI Gqeberha 2009
- 50 M. Vijay v. PBKS Mohali 2013
- 49 M Vijay v. RR Jaipur 2013
- 49 D Smith v MI Wankhede 2014
- 49 R. Gaikwad v. GT Chennai 2026
– 49 balls makes it the slowest 50 in the Impact Sub-Era (since 2023).
