Three losses in the first four matches, two of which have come at home, have not painted a good picture for Chennai Super Kings. CSK have lost to Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Delhi Capitals in 2025 and need to dial an answer for the early troubles they are enduring, before it is too late.
Losing to Royal Challengers Bengaluru for the first time at Chepauk since 2008. Losing to Delhi Capitals at their dear home for the first time since 2010. Two streaks ended in a matter of a week.
Chennai Super Kings are in choppy waters already after playing just four matches. The problems are laid bare after the fortress was breached, again.
Not only because they have not chased down 180+ targets since 2018. Not only because their batting has faltered yet again. But the sheer intent needed to win matches and chase big totals down, are the things under question.
The problem seemingly starts from right at the top and stretches all the way down to the lower order. Of all the 10 teams in IPL 2025, CSK have the worst run-rate in the powerplay with 7.4 runs averagely scored in an over in the first six in 2025.
CSK is not a team that goes big right from the start. They have scored around 7.5 to 8 runs an over in powerplay each year since 2018. However, their run rate in the powerplay in 2023, the last time they won the title, was 9.35, the second-best among all teams that year.
The likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Moeen Ali and Shivam Dube had provided the Super Kings the impetus needed in the past few seasons. It is not happening this time, part of which is due to the absence of the majority of those players and the failure of other batters on whom they invested. The likes of Rahul Tripathi, Deepak Hooda and Vijay Shankar haven’t fired, while Dube seems to have lost his steam from the middle of last season.
CSK are famously known for reviving careers. They have done so with the likes of Ambati Rayudu, Dube and Ajinkya Rahane. From the fringes of their IPL teams, CSK have helped these players rediscover their mojo and be in the scheme of things at the international level. But it seems that this team needs a revival too.
Chennai have fielded 17 players in just four matches and all seven overseas ones. This paints an ugly picture of a team, known for backing its players, being forced to chop and change due to the results not coming out. But this is also due to their players not firing.
If the top order is not doing well, the middle and the lower order are no exceptions too. There is talk going around MS Dhoni, his entry points, his intent and whatnot. At 43, Dhoni is still a maverick behind the stumps, but his stocks as a finisher have dwindled.
Only 20.23 per cent of Dhoni’s runs have come in CSK’s wins since 2023, the other nearly 80 have come in losses. This is also due to Dhoni not being needed much when the team is winning. But what is hurting the fans is seeing Dhoni not able to finish the things, he almost used to master once.
CSK have also not been able to read the conditions well at home with their head coach Stephen Fleming having called that they don’t have a home advantage at Chepauk for a number of years after their defeat to RCB.
The alarm bells have started to ring. Three losses in the first four matches with two of them coming at home, from teams that they had not lost for some while, raise questions that the team needs to answer. The best way would be to do that with the bat and the ball. They have done so previously when they won the IPL 2023 despite finishing ninth in 2022. They have to do it now with their backs against the wall early in the season. These are still early days but these losses paint a bad picture. The fortress has been breached multiple times and CSK need to dial in a response now.
