For the first time, Chennai Super Kings have failed to make the last-four stage of the IPL on back-to-back occasions. In 2024 they fell short by a whisker, losing a close game to RCB. This time, they are done and dusted by the 10th game. TOI looks into the possible reasons...
OUTDATED APPROACH: The CSK management believed going hammer and tongs from ball one wasn’t necessarily the way to go in T20s. They forgot some of their best openers like Matthew Hayden, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith and Shane Watson were absolute swashbucklers. CSK were one of the first teams to score 100 in six overs as early as 2014 — against Punjab in the ‘Eliminator’ in a losing cause — but such stats were glossed over.
Their first-choice top-four — Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi and Ruturaj Gaikwad — are not natural six-hitters. The team averages 45 in the Powerplay when the going rate is 57. Add to that Gaikwad’s injury and withdrawal after the fifth game, and CSK were caught in no-man’s land.
POOR AUCTION STRATEGY: In earlier editions, CSK have been served well by experienced players like Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Watson, Robin Uthappa, Harbhajan Singh and a few others who were considered surplus by their franchises at that stage. They wanted to replicate the same theory with the likes of Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, Ashwin and Sam Curran, who have not played their best T20 cricket in the last few years. At a time when other teams have looked to bank on youth, CSK refused to invest in talented youngsters. They were finally forced to include players like Shaik Rasheed, Ayush Mhatre and Dewald Brevis in their XI, but it was too little too late.
THE MSD CONUNDRUM: CSK just can’t seem to let go of their talisman. Not just because of what he brings to the table as a player but also because of the brand value that he commands. The feverish support that CSK gets across the country is mostly about Dhoni, something similar to Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. But just as neither Messi nor Ronaldo play for elite European clubs anymore, MSD should also realize that as a player among the elite, his time is up.
Dhoni is unable to bat before the 15th over due to his ageing knees and even if he comes in to bat late, the 43-year-old just can’t deal with wrist-spin. All Punjab Kings did on Wednesday night was to hold back Yuzvendra Chahal for the 19th over, and Dhoni was a sitting duck once again. CSK keep insisting that Dhoni’s captaincy skills are second to none, but in this day and age, he can probably do the marshalling of troops from the dugout as well.
PATHIRANA’S FORM: The team pinned their pace-bowling hopes on the Sri Lankan slinger, who had shaped up as one of the best death bowlers in the last couple of IPLs. But the Lankan has completely lost his rhythm, bowling about 200 wides in T20 cricket last year, and that has continued in this IPL as well. The sudden changes of pace, the bouncer and the lethal yorker — which were part of Pathirana’s armoury — have been missing and he has gone for an economy rate of 10.39 runs. It has left CSK with no control at the backend of the innings.
FAULTY SCOUTING: Most teams have thrown up fresh faces but CSK seem to be slightly slow with the process. Barring Ruturaj Gaikwad, there hasn’t been a single home-grown player who has made a mark for CSK in recent years. A superb TNPL product like Sai Sudharshan has been allowed to prosper for GT while other teams have thrown up players like Priyansh Arya, Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Naman Dhir, among others.
OUTDATED APPROACH: The CSK management believed going hammer and tongs from ball one wasn’t necessarily the way to go in T20s. They forgot some of their best openers like Matthew Hayden, Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith and Shane Watson were absolute swashbucklers. CSK were one of the first teams to score 100 in six overs as early as 2014 — against Punjab in the ‘Eliminator’ in a losing cause — but such stats were glossed over.
What went wrong with CSK in IPL 2025
Their first-choice top-four — Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi and Ruturaj Gaikwad — are not natural six-hitters. The team averages 45 in the Powerplay when the going rate is 57. Add to that Gaikwad’s injury and withdrawal after the fifth game, and CSK were caught in no-man’s land.
POOR AUCTION STRATEGY: In earlier editions, CSK have been served well by experienced players like Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Watson, Robin Uthappa, Harbhajan Singh and a few others who were considered surplus by their franchises at that stage. They wanted to replicate the same theory with the likes of Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, Ashwin and Sam Curran, who have not played their best T20 cricket in the last few years. At a time when other teams have looked to bank on youth, CSK refused to invest in talented youngsters. They were finally forced to include players like Shaik Rasheed, Ayush Mhatre and Dewald Brevis in their XI, but it was too little too late.
THE MSD CONUNDRUM: CSK just can’t seem to let go of their talisman. Not just because of what he brings to the table as a player but also because of the brand value that he commands. The feverish support that CSK gets across the country is mostly about Dhoni, something similar to Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. But just as neither Messi nor Ronaldo play for elite European clubs anymore, MSD should also realize that as a player among the elite, his time is up.
Dhoni is unable to bat before the 15th over due to his ageing knees and even if he comes in to bat late, the 43-year-old just can’t deal with wrist-spin. All Punjab Kings did on Wednesday night was to hold back Yuzvendra Chahal for the 19th over, and Dhoni was a sitting duck once again. CSK keep insisting that Dhoni’s captaincy skills are second to none, but in this day and age, he can probably do the marshalling of troops from the dugout as well.
PATHIRANA’S FORM: The team pinned their pace-bowling hopes on the Sri Lankan slinger, who had shaped up as one of the best death bowlers in the last couple of IPLs. But the Lankan has completely lost his rhythm, bowling about 200 wides in T20 cricket last year, and that has continued in this IPL as well. The sudden changes of pace, the bouncer and the lethal yorker — which were part of Pathirana’s armoury — have been missing and he has gone for an economy rate of 10.39 runs. It has left CSK with no control at the backend of the innings.
FAULTY SCOUTING: Most teams have thrown up fresh faces but CSK seem to be slightly slow with the process. Barring Ruturaj Gaikwad, there hasn’t been a single home-grown player who has made a mark for CSK in recent years. A superb TNPL product like Sai Sudharshan has been allowed to prosper for GT while other teams have thrown up players like Priyansh Arya, Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Naman Dhir, among others.
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