Sanju Samson and MS Dhoni (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)
New Delhi: Sanju Samson continued his rich style in the IPL 2026 Chennai Super Kings against Gujarat Titans at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday. The right-hander once again showed his simple but effective technique – watch the ball closely, and when it is in rhythm, send it sailing over the boundary.Samson started his innings cautiously facing opener Mohammad Siraj as he managed just one run. But he quickly turned things around in the next round, beating Gujarat Titans spearhead Kagiso Rabada. He slotted a clean boundary off Rabada, and in the process reached a major milestone – 5,000 runs in the Indian Premier League.
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This achievement placed him among the elite group, but what stood out most was the speed with which he reached this achievement.
Samson became one of the fastest batsmen in IPL history to reach 5,000 runs, surpassing several big names in the format.
The list of fastest to 5,000 IPL runs highlights his meteoric rise among the greats.Fewest balls to reach 5000 IPL runs
- 3288 AB de Villiers
- 3554 Warner Dr
- 3555 S Samson *
- 3620 S Raina
- 3688 Kuala Lumpur Rahul
- 3691
MS Dhoni
AB de Villiers tops the list, reaching the mark with 3,288 balls, followed by David Warner with 3,554 balls. Samson now joins this elite group, surpassing Suresh Raina (3620 balls), KL Rahul (3688 balls) and MS Dhoni (3691 balls), underscoring his consistency and strike rate in the league.
Most runs in Indian Premier League
| player | mat | Runs | HS | Ave | Belgian franc | SAR | 100 | 50 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) | 274 | 8989 | 113* | 39.95 | 6720 | 133.76 | 8 | 66 |
| Rohit Sharma (Deccan Chargers/Mumbai Indians) | 276 | 7183 | 109* | 29.92 | 5417 | 132.60 | 2 | 48 |
| Shikhar Dhawan (Delhi Capitals/Deccan Chargers/Mumbai Indians/Punjab Kings/Sunrisers Hyderabad) | 222 | 6769 | 106* | 35.25 | 5324 | 127.14 | 2 | 51 |
| David Warner (Delhi Capitals/Sunrisers Hyderabad) | 184 | 6565 | 126 | 40.52 | 4697 | 139.77 | 4 | 62 |
| KL KL (Delhi Capitals/Kings XI Punjab/Lucknow Super Giants/Punjab Kings/Royal Challengers Bengaluru/Sunrisers Hyderabad) | 152 | 5579 | 152* | 46.88 | 4029 | 138.47 | 6 | 42 |
| Suresh Raina (Chennai Super Kings/Gujarat Lions) | 205 | 5528 | 100* | 32.51 | 4043 | 136.73 | 1 | 39 |
| MS Dhoni (Chennai Super Kings / Rising Pune Super Giants) | 278 | 5439 | 84* | 38.30 | 3957 | 137.45 | 0 | 24 |
| Ajinkya Rahane (Chennai Super Kings/Delhi Capitals/Kolkata Knight Riders/Mumbai Indians/Rising Pune Supergiants/Rajasthan Royals) | 205 | 5184 | 105* | 30.31 | 4130 | 125.52 | 2 | 34 |
| AB de Villiers (Delhi Capitals/Royal Challengers Bengaluru) | 184 | 5162 | 133* | 39.70 | 3403 | 151.68 | 3 | 40 |
| Sanju Samson (Chennai Super Kings/Delhi Capitals/Rajasthan Royals) | 185 | 5008 | 119 | 31.69 | 3562 | 140.59 | 5 | 26 |
| Chris Gayle (Kolkata Knight Riders/Kings XI Punjab/Punjab Kings/Royal Challengers Bengaluru) | 142 | 4965 | 175* | 39.72 | 3333 | 148.96 | 6 | 31 |
Meanwhile, Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill won the toss and chose to bowl first, hoping the early conditions would help his attack. GT entered the match seventh on the points table with six points from three wins in seven matches, while CSK finished fifth on the same points but with a better net run rate.Both teams made a change in this crucial mid-table encounter. GT brought in Arshad Khan to bolster their bowling options, while CSK handed over a place in the playing XI to Urvil Patel, looking to add more balance to their line-up.the difference:Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudarsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Shah Rukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar.Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (W), Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Orville Patel, Dewald Preves, Shivam Dubey, Kartik Sharma, Jimmy Overton, Akhil Hossain, Noor Ahmed, Anshul Kamboj, Gurjapanet Singh.