Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have now lost both their matches in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The recent one came against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Chennai on April 3 (Friday). Chasing 210, PBKS got to their target easily by five wickets and eight balls to spare.
Former India batter Kris Srikkanth believes CSK lost the match within the first four overs, when Priyansh Arya went berserk and as captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad has no clue how to get the situation under control.
“The bowlers totally lost the plot under Priyansh Arya’s onslaught. Though he scored only 39, because it was off 11 balls, things opened out for the rest. Matt Henry was clueless. Ruturaj had no clue as a captain as to whom to bowl and when,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
Like-for-like replacement?
Srikkanth also pointed out the poor utilisation of Prashant Veer, who has bought for INR 14.2 crore by CSK to fill the void left by Ravindra Jadeja, but that has not happened in the first two games of the season.
“They said Prashant Veer is an all-rounder and a replacement for Ravindra Jadeja. Yet, he wasn’t given one over with the ball. In the same way last match, Matthew Short was playing for his off-spin but didn’t bowl a single over. Prashant Veer neither batted well nor bowled at all, and he’s been called Jadeja’s like-to-like replacement,” Srikkanth said.
Bottom again
CSK, who have been without MS Dhoni for the first two matches, will look to get off the mark when they take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on April 5 (Sunday) in Chennai. CSK finished bottom of the IPL 2025 points table as well, winning just four matches overall.
As things stand, they are at the bottom of the table this season as well.
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