CSK Win the Toss and Elect to Bowl at Home in IPL 2026

Ruturaj Gaikwad chooses to bowl as CSK face Lucknow Super Giants at home in IPL 2026.

Toss and Team Selection The ceremonial toss saw Ruturaj Gaikwad emerge victorious for the third time in IPL 2026, opting to have Chennai Super Kings bowl against Lucknow Super Giants. The crowd at Chepauk was treated to a song from one of the new Tamil Nadu chief minister's movies, which welcomed the two captains to the pitch on the day of his swearing-in ceremony. This event coincided with a predominantly regular crowd presence, yet it was clear that cricket had the upper hand in Chennai. In the absence of MS Dhoni, Chennai Super Kings hold a significant advantage. ## Pitch Conditions and Rishabh Pant's Decisions Rishabh Pant, driven by the fact that the pitch had been covered for an extended period due to rain, also desired to bowl. Lucknow Super Giants, on the other hand, welcomed Josh Inglis back into their starting lineup, bringing them closer to full strength, while Arshin Kulkarni dropped out. Potential impact substitutes Avesh Khan and Mayank Yadav were available on the bench. ## Chennai Super Kings Lineup and Bench Chennai Super Kings are likely to introduce Sarfaraz Khan into their lineup when they take on LSG. Interestingly, they had Shivam Dube in their initial bowling XI and Gurjapneet Singh on the bench. Chennai Super Kings' lineup includes Sanju Samson as the wicketkeeper, Ruturaj Gaikwad as the captain, Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Jamie Overton, Akeal Hosein, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmed, and Mukesh Choudhary. Their bench features Gurjapneet Singh, Prashant Veer, Matthew Short, Sarfaraz Khan, and Akash Madhwal. ## Lucknow Super Giants Lineup and Bench Lucknow Super Giants' starting lineup consists of Mitchell Marsh, Josh Inglis, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant, Aiden Markram, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Shami, Prince Yadav, and Digvesh Rathi. Their bench includes Mukul Choudhary, Avesh Khan, Abdul Samad, M Siddharth, and Mayank Yadav.