Cricket in Chennai is not a sport. It is a way of life. And Chepauk is the temple where the Yellow Army gathers every IPL season to worship. Dating back to 1916, the MA Chidambaram Stadium is the oldest continuously used cricket ground in India.
It hosted India’s first home Test in 1934 against England and staged the second-ever tied Test in history when Australia toured in 1986. Since IPL 2008, Chennai Super Kings have turned this ground into the most feared home fortress in the tournament.
The pitch is slow, low, dry, and starts turning from the sixth over. Teams without quality spinners simply do not win here. CSK’s 68% home win rate at Chepauk tells you everything about how perfectly they have built their squads around this surface.
MA Chidambaram Stadium Quick Overview
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Year Established | 1916 |
| Location | Chepauk, Chennai, Tamil Nadu |
| Capacity | 38,223 |
| Home IPL Team | Chennai Super Kings |
| Total IPL Matches | 92 |
| First IPL Match | April 23, 2008 (CSK vs MI) |
| IPL Finals Hosted | 2011, 2012, 2024 |
| Named Ends | Anna Pavilion End, V Pattabhiraman Gate End |
| Floodlights | Yes (since 1996) |
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL Key Stats at a Glance
These numbers reveal why Chepauk is the most unique and predictable surface in the entire IPL.
- Total IPL Matches Hosted: 92
- Won Batting First: 52 (56.5%)
- Won Batting Second: 40 (43.5%)
- Chase Win Rate: 43.5%
- Average 1st Innings Score: 164.6
- Average 2nd Innings Score: 150.3
- Total IPL Runs Scored: 28,975
- Total IPL Wickets Taken: 1,022
- Total Sixes: 1,017 (avg 11.05 per match)
- Total Fours: 2,352
- 1st Innings Scores Above 200: Only 16 out of 92 matches
- Highest Total: 246/5 (CSK vs RR, 2010)
- Lowest Total: 70 all out (RCB vs CSK, 2019)
- Highest Individual Score: 127* (Murali Vijay, CSK vs RR, 2010)
- Best Bowling Figures: 5/5 (Akash Madhwal, MI vs LSG, 2023)
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL Historic Records
Five records that define Chepauk’s IPL identity across 92 matches and 16 seasons of cricket.
| Record | Details |
|---|---|
| Highest Total | 246/5, CSK vs RR, 2010 |
| Lowest Total | 70 all out, RCB vs CSK, 2019 |
| Highest Successful Chase | 213/4, LSG vs CSK, 2024 (Stoinis 124*) |
| Best Individual Score | 127*, Murali Vijay, CSK vs RR, 2010 |
| Best Bowling Figures | 5/5, Akash Madhwal, MI vs LSG, 2023 |
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL Batting Records
Chepauk rewards patience, placement, and the ability to rotate strike against spin. Only 16 first innings out of 92 have crossed 200 here, making this the toughest ground for power hitters in the entire IPL.
Top Run Scorers at Chepauk
MS Dhoni never batted higher than number five for most of his career, yet his 1,547 runs at Chepauk lead all batters at this venue.
Thala’s ability to read the slow surface and finish innings with calculated power hitting made him the perfect Chepauk batter across 15 IPL seasons.
| # | Player | Runs |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MS Dhoni | 1,547 |
| 2 | Suresh Raina | 1,498 |
| 3 | Murali Vijay | 928 |
| 4 | Ruturaj Gaikwad | 764 |
Highest Individual Scores at Chepauk
Murali Vijay’s unbeaten 127 off 56 balls against Rajasthan Royals in 2010 remains the highest individual score at Chepauk.
He reached his century in just 46 balls, still the fastest hundred ever scored at this ground, as CSK posted their record 246/5 that night.
| # | Player | Score | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murali Vijay | 127* (56b) | CSK |
| 2 | Marcus Stoinis | 124* | LSG |
| 3 | Murali Vijay | 113 | CSK |
| 4 | Ruturaj Gaikwad | 108* | CSK |
| 5 | Suresh Raina | 100* | CSK |
Most Sixes Hit at Chepauk
Dhoni’s 77 sixes at Chepauk stand alone in a ground where hitting sixes is genuinely difficult. The straight boundary stretches to 80 metres, and the square boundary sits between 65 and 68 metres, meaning every six here requires clean timing or exceptional raw power.
| # | Player | Sixes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | MS Dhoni | 77 |
| 2 | Suresh Raina | 45 |
| 3 | Murali Vijay | 35 |
| 4 | Albie Morkel | 26 |
| 5 | Dwayne Bravo | 24 |
Most Fours Hit At Chepauk
Suresh Raina’s 165 fours at Chepauk tell the story of a batter who understood this surface better than almost anyone. His ratio of 165 fours to just 45 sixes reflects a ground hitting approach perfectly suited to the slow surface and large boundaries where placement beats power.
| # | Player | Fours |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suresh Raina | 165 |
| 2 | MS Dhoni | 120 |
| 3 | Murali Vijay | 105 |
| 4 | Faf du Plessis | 85 |
| 5 | Ruturaj Gaikwad | 80+ |
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL Bowling Records
Spin dominates at Chepauk like no other IPL venue. Right-arm bowlers have taken 745 wickets at this ground compared to just 277 by left-arm bowlers, proving that off spin and leg spin are the most valuable bowling types on this surface.
Top Wicket Takers at Chepauk
Ravichandran Ashwin grew up in Chennai and developed his craft on this very surface. His 52 wickets at Chepauk are the most by any bowler, with his right arm off spin getting natural assistance from the red soil pitch that grips and turns from the eighth over onwards.
| # | Player | Wickets |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ravichandran Ashwin | 52 |
| 2 | Dwayne Bravo | 44 |
| 3 | Ravindra Jadeja | 42 |
| 4 | Albie Morkel | 36 |
| 5 | Mohit Sharma | 28 |
Best Bowling Figures at Chepauk
Akash Madhwal’s 5/5 against LSG in the IPL 2023 Eliminator is one of the most devastating spells this ground has ever witnessed. Five wickets for just five runs as MI won by 81 runs to end LSG’s season.
| # | Player | Figures | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Akash Madhwal | 5/5 | MI |
| 2 | Andre Russell | 5/15 | KKR |
| 3 | Ravindra Jadeja | 5/16 | CSK |
| 4 | R Ashwin | 4/11 | CSK |
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL Team Records
Chepauk produces extreme results in both directions. CSK’s 246/5 and RCB’s 70 all out happened on the same surface, proving that this pitch rewards teams who respect its conditions and punishes those who do not.
Highest Team Totals at Chepauk
CSK’s 246/5 against Rajasthan Royals in 2010 remains the highest total at Chepauk by a margin of 23 runs. Murali Vijay’s 127 and Albie Morkel’s 62 powered that innings. Only 16 of 92 first innings have crossed 200 here, making every 200-plus score a genuine outlier at this ground.
| # | Match | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | CSK vs RR | 246/5 (CSK) |
| 2 | RR vs CSK | 223/5 (RR) |
| 3 | CSK vs DD | 222/5 (CSK) |
| 4 | CSK vs RCB | 209/4 (CSK) |
| 5 | CSK vs RCB | 205/5 (CSK) |
Lowest Team Totals at Chepauk
RCB’s 70 all out against CSK in 2019 is 94 runs below the venue’s average second innings score, a statistical outlier that shows what happens when a quality batting lineup fails to respect Chepauk’s spinning conditions.
| # | Match | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | RCB vs CSK | 70 all out (RCB) |
| 2 | LSG vs MI | 101 all out (LSG) |
| 3 | CSK vs KKR | 103/9 (CSK) |
| 4 | KKR vs CSK | 108/9 (KKR) |
| 5 | DC vs CSK | 115 all out (DC) |
Highest Successful Chases at Chepauk
LSG chased down 213 against CSK in IPL 2024, with Marcus Stoinis’ 124 not out driving the chase almost single-handedly. Before that match, no team had ever successfully chased more than 210 at Chepauk. Chasing teams win only 43.5% of the time here, making this the toughest IPL venue to bat second.
| # | Match | Total Chased |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | LSG vs CSK (2024) | 213/4 (Stoinis 124*) |
| 2 | CSK vs RCB | 206/5 |
| 3 | PBKS vs CSK | 201/6 |
| 4 | MI vs KKR | 190/3 |
| 5 | CSK vs MI | 185/4 |
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL Fielding Records
Suresh Raina’s 25 catches at Chepauk lead all fielders at this venue. His sharp reflexes in the inner circle and safe hands near the boundary made him one of the most reliable fielders in CSK’s dynasty. Dhoni’s 22 dismissals include his trademark stumpings that became a Chepauk signature.
| # | Player | Catches |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suresh Raina | 25 |
| 2 | MS Dhoni | 22 (includes stumpings) |
| 3 | Faf du Plessis | 18 |
| 4 | Ravindra Jadeja | 16 |
| 5 | Dwayne Bravo | 14 |
CSK’s Home Record at Chepauk
Chennai Super Kings have built the greatest home fortress in IPL history at this ground. Their 68% win rate at Chepauk did not come from superior talent alone. It came from building squads around the surface, reading match conditions accurately, and turning a modest first innings average of 164.6 into targets opponents find extremely difficult to chase.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Matches Played at Home | 75 |
| Matches Won | 51 |
| Matches Lost | 24 |
| Home Win Percentage | 68%+ |
| IPL Titles Won | 5 (2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, 2023) |
| IPL Finals Hosted | 2011, 2012, 2024 |
MA Chidambaram Stadium Pitch Report For IPL 2026
Understanding Chepauk’s pitch is the single most important factor for fantasy picks and match predictions when CSK play at home.
| Factor | Details |
|---|---|
| Surface | Red soil, grips for spinners |
| Pitch Nature | Bowling friendly, spin fortress |
| Pace Rating | 2/5 |
| Spin Rating | 5/5 |
| Dew Factor | Low |
| Straight Boundary | ~80 metres |
| Square Boundary | 65 to 68 metres |
| Average 1st Innings Score | 164.6 |
| Average 2nd Innings Score | 150.3 |
| Bat First Win % | 56.5% |
| Toss Impact | 54% win rate for toss winners |
Key conditions every fan should know:
- Pitch slows down significantly after the sixth over, giving spinners grip and turn
- Right-arm bowlers have taken 745 wickets compared to 277 by left-arm bowlers at this venue
- Batting first and posting 175+ gives a high win probability
- Scores below 165 shift the advantage to the chasing team
- Large boundaries (80m straight) make sixes difficult, averaging only 11 per match
- Dew is less influential here than at coastal venues, favouring defending teams
MA Chidambaram Stadium IPL 2026 Ticket Prices
CSK tickets are among the fastest-selling in the entire IPL. Fixtures against MI and RCB at Chepauk sell out in under 30 minutes, so early registration is essential.
| Category | Price (INR) |
|---|---|
| General Stand | Rs 700 onwards |
| Mid Range | Rs 2,000 |
| Premium / Pavilion | Rs 10,000 |
| VIP / Hospitality | Rs 30,000 onwards |
| Booking Platforms | BookMyShow, District by Zomato |
How to Reach MA Chidambaram Stadium
Roads near Chepauk are congested from 2 hours before the match. Metro travel combined with an auto rickshaw for the final stretch is the smartest option.
| Mode | Details |
|---|---|
| Airport | Chennai International Airport, approx 16 km |
| Nearest Metro | Government Estate or Chepauk, Chennai Metro Line 1 |
| Nearest Railway Stations | Chennai Central and Chennai Egmore, within 5 km |
| Parking | Very limited, not recommended on match days |
| Best Mode | Metro with an auto rickshaw for the final stretch |
Upcoming IPL 2026 Matches at MA Chidambaram Stadium
Three confirmed home matches for Chennai Super Kings feature in the first phase of the IPL 2026 schedule.
| Date | Match | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|
| April 3 | Chennai Super Kings vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM |
| April 6 | Kolkata Knight Riders vs Punjab Kings | 7:30 PM |
| April 11 | Chennai Super Kings vs Delhi Capitals | 7:30 PM |
More home fixtures will be added once the BCCI releases the full IPL 2026 schedule.
Suggested Reads:
MA Chidambaram, Home of The Yellow Lions
Chepauk is not just a cricket ground. It is the den of the Yellow Army. From Dhoni’s last-ball sixes to Ashwin’s carrom balls to Jadeja’s electric fielding, every CSK legend has been shaped by this surface.
The famous yellow sea in the stands creates an atmosphere that visiting teams genuinely fear. When 38,000 voices chant “Dhoni, Dhoni” under the Chennai night sky, Chepauk transforms from a stadium into a fortress.
Five IPL titles, a 68% home win rate, and 16 years of dominance prove that no team understands its home ground better than CSK understands Chepauk. This is where the Yellow Army lives, and opponents merely survive.
