Former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth recently came forward and opined that Chennai Super Kings should exclude Ravichandran Ashwin from their squad after his subpar performances in the recent matches in the IPL 2025.
Chennai Super Kings have been in horrid form in the ongoing IPL (Indian Premier League) 2025. The side, after winning their first game of the season against Mumbai Indians, have gone on a losing streak, losing clashes against RCB, RR, DC, PBKS, and KKR as well.
The five-time champions sit in ninth place in the standings and are looking for ways to get back into form, and seeing their performances, former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth took centre stage and opined that veteran all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin should be dropped from the squad after his subpar performances.
“Ashwin has been bowling TERRIBLY. If he keeps bowling like this, I’m not even sure if he’s going to be in the XI, let alone play well. Jadeja is not at his peak. I want CSK to remove Ashwin from the XI. I have been supporting Ashwin till now, but not after this performance. I think CSK should be bold and drop him,” Srikkanth said in a video on his YouTube channel.
“There’s a leg-spinner called Shreyas Gopal, right? Play him instead of Ashwin in the next match. Remove Ashwin from the team. It will work out. Gopal is a really good player; he can win matches. He has fire in the belly. I backed Ashwin for the longest time, but I can’t anymore. I have seen it all,” he added.
It is interesting to note that Ashwin was roped in by CSK for Rs 9.75 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction, and where many had anticipated Ashwin’s return to be a grand one, the veteran has been unable to put in his best performance so far.
Furthermore, Srikkanth suggested CSK go with fresh faces instead of relying on tried and tested players.
“Try someone new. Going back to the same people, like Tripathi and Hooda, what message are you sending? CSK is the best among the worst teams. They don’t have batting, bowling, or fielding. If you feel the season is going to go terrible, try out new players. That’s how you got Ruturaj Gaikwad,” said Srikkanth.
