With shadows of five consecutive losses, dark clouds follow the Chennai Super Kings both figuratively and literally in the IPL 2025 campaign. This was after failing to bring Australia’s talisman back into the fold to calm the crisis at a time when their collapse at Chepauk, destroying their hopes of getting to the final, was their lowest ever at home at Chepauk. CSK’s chances of making the cut are dwindling fast, barring a misfiring batting order and a string of bad performances. Their hopes are not mathematically eliminated yet, and now their only hope is drastic changes and turnaround — beginning with their clash against the fierce Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Ekana Stadium.
Primarily, CSK’s worry has been the slow scoring by their batsmen, and they are miles behind on strike rate and intent. While the current combinations have failed, the franchise needs bold decisions to stay on the table of the tournament. It may be the time to finally let some fresh blood into the team, with some experienced players faltering. Names constantly being floated around include those of Shaik Rasheed and Vansh Bedi, which might just point to the right sort of change of approach for a club that has always preferred experience over youth.
The criticism also comes for the timing of MS Dhoni’s entry, which is too late almost always; an example of that was the recent loss against KKR. Many fans and pundits were baffled why there was a sacrifice of an impact sub for an extra batter only for Dhoni to remain back. Sam Curran could be brought up higher in the order, with other younger domestic batters given the responsibility of taking responsibility at the top.
On the other hand, LSG is now in a more favourable state. They have a well balanced team ready to play, whom they have clicked consistently, and if Mitchell Marsh is all right with the ball and he is in scintillating form, Nicholas Pooran, they are looking forward to his return.
Join our whatsapp group for Latest updates
Click Here for Chhattisgarh News
Click Here for Entertainment News