Delhi Capitals (DC) continued their dream run in IPL 2025 with a third consecutive win, defeating Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 24 runs at the Chepauk Stadium on Saturday. Powered by a commanding KL Rahul half-century and a masterful spin display from Vipraj Nigam and Kuldeep Yadav, DC now sit comfortably at the top of the table. Meanwhile, CSK's struggles continued, slipping to eighth with just one win in four games.

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Opting to bat first, DC suffered an early setback as Jake Fraser-McGurk departed for a duck in the very first over, courtesy of Khaleel Ahmed. However, KL Rahul and Abishek Porel steadied the ship, adding quick runs during the powerplay and taking DC past 50.

Porel looked in fine touch before Ravindra Jadeja dismissed him for 33 off 20 balls right after the powerplay. Axar Patel joined Rahul at 54/2 and announced his arrival with a six off his very first delivery, but his cameo of 21 off 14 ended in the 11th over at the hands of Noor Ahmad.

From there, Rahul took charge, accelerating with the help of Sameer Rizvi. The duo smashed 17 runs off Noor in the 15th over and brought up their 50-run partnership in just 27 balls. Rahul reached his first IPL fifty for DC in 33 balls, mixing elegance with aggression.

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Rizvi was dismissed for 20 off 15 in the 16th over, and Stubbs came in to add a fiery finish. He hammered 15 runs off Mukesh Choudhary in the 19th over, while Rahul continued to anchor the innings. The DC skipper finally fell for a classy 77 off 51 balls (6 fours, 3 sixes) in the penultimate over to Pathirana.

Stubbs stayed unbeaten on 24 off 12 as DC ended at 183/6 in 20 overs. Khaleel Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers with 2/25 in his four overs. Jadeja was miserly, giving away just 19 runs and picking up a wicket. Pathirana (1/31) and Noor (1/36) chipped in with a wicket each, while Ashwin (0/21) kept things tight without any breakthroughs. Mukesh Choudhary endured a rough day, leaking 50 runs in four wicketless overs.

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Vipraj, Kuldeep choke CSK’s chase

CSK’s chase started shakily as Rachin Ravindra was caught and bowled by Mukesh Kumar for just 3. Things worsened when Mitchell Starc removed CSK skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad for 5, thanks to a sharp catch by McGurk in the deep. CSK were 20/2 in under three overs.

Devon Conway and Vijay Shankar tried to rebuild, but Vipraj Nigam's clever googly removed Conway for 13. Dube came in and struck a few blows, but Vipraj struck again, dismissing him for 18, with Stubbs holding on at long-on.

Kuldeep Yadav then trapped Jadeja lbw for just 2, leaving CSK tottering at 74/5. Amidst the collapse, MS Dhoni walked out to a thunderous ovation. Alongside Vijay Shankar, he tried to stage a late rescue act. Vijay fought valiantly, scoring a composed 69* off 54 balls (5 fours, 1 six), while Dhoni chipped in with 30* off 26 (1 four, 1 six). But with the required rate soaring, the pair couldn’t push CSK over the line.

CSK ended at 158/5, falling short by 24 runs.

(With inputs from agencies)