IPL 2026 Countdown | CSK wanting to recapture their glory days

When you might be on the backside, the one manner is up. That might properly be Chennai Super Kings’ mantra for the 2026 season. The five-time champion slipped into an abyss final season when it received simply 4 video games and had the ignominy of ending with the wood spoon for the primary time.

The main downside was that it lacked the batting firepower to maintain tempo with its rivals, who had all pushed the sport ahead by their fearless strategy and posted imposing totals.

Midway by the marketing campaign, CSK course-corrected by drafting in promising children like Dewald Brevis, Ayush Mhatre and Urvil Patel as damage replacements, who now kind a formidable core.

A extra emphatic indication of that shift got here in the course of the low season when it pulled off one of many largest offers by signing Sanju Samson from Rajasthan Royals.

At the mini-auction, Super Kings, armed with a hefty purse, additional splurged on two younger uncapped Indian gamers — Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma — recognized for his or her power-hitting.

If the pitch at Chepauk resembles the featherbeds that had been dished out in the course of the current ICC T20 World Cup, anticipate some mammoth totals from the Yellow Brigade.

While the Chennai outfit has bolstered its batting, its bowling is an space of concern. Last yr, solely Noor Ahmad and Khaleel Ahmed delivered with the ball, and rather a lot relies on them once more.

To make issues worse, pacer Nathan Ellis was dominated out every week in the past. The Australian was anticipated to be the essential element in the course of the demise overs, particularly after Sri Lanka speedster Matheesha Pathirana was launched. Spencer Johnson, Ellis’ alternative, is getting back from an extended layoff and is anticipated to affix solely by April 21.

The Dhoni issue

How and the place M.S. Dhoni suits into the CSK equation is a key side. The 44-year-old can bat just some overs, however the expertise he brings in stays very important for skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad, who continues to be discovering his toes. It can be fascinating to see how the legend goes about his enterprise in what might properly be his farewell season.

Sport is replete with examples of storied franchises caught in a rut and simply basking in previous glory. Super Kings enter the nineteenth version in unfamiliar territory after having did not qualify for the playoffs in two consecutive editions — a primary of their embellished historical past — and would need to carry cheer to their legion of followers by successful a file sixth title.