Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: The toss moment in the IPL 2026 match between Chennai Super Kings and Punjab Kings turned unexpectedly chaotic due to the deafening crowd at Chepauk. As captain Ruturaj Gaikwad came forward to speak, the noise made it nearly impossible for anyone to hear, creating a light-hearted but awkward delay.Toss presenter Ian Bishop had to step closer to Gaikwad and eventually apologised for the delay. “I don’t know. I don’t know how long. Let me come closer. I apologise to the cameras,” he said. He added, “I’m sorry this is dragging on because of the noise and the cheering. I am sorry for not being able to hear you and for dragging this on.” The moment highlighted just how passionate CSK fans are at their home ground.Watch:Meanwhile, PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and chose to bowl first, citing a fresh pitch and confidence from their previous win.Gaikwad explained his team’s approach, especially the decision to open the batting himself. “That has been the key for CSK as a franchise… I felt nothing better than having Sanju and me open the batting. So that was just the thought process behind it,” he said.He also spoke about the pitch conditions: “It looks a bit on the drier side. And I don’t think it will change too much… The dew will be a key factor in the second inning. So I think runs on the board and definitely you can defend on this track.”Coming off a heavy loss in their first match, CSK are aiming to bounce back, while PBKS look to continue their winning momentum.CSK vs PBKS playing XIs:Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (captain), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.Punjab Kings Impact subs: Suryansh Shedge, Priyansh Arya, Vishnu Vinod, Pravin Dubey, Hemant BrarChennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (captain), Ayush Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer, Noor Ahmed, Matt Henry, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed.Chennai Super Kings Impact subs: Jamie Overton, Rahul Chahar, Matthew Short, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Gurjapneet Singh.
