Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) performances have been disappointing in IPL 2025, with the franchise sitting rock bottom of the points table after eight matches, of which they have lost six. Former India cricketer and CSK legend Suresh Raina, meanwhile, has continued the criticism of his old team. Raina has pointed out the lack of local players in CSK’s squad, stating that this side is the weakest the franchise has ever had, and that it has veered away from its brand of cricket.
“This is the weakest CSK team, definitely. I think there’s no intent. The hunger to win is not there. Not to disrespect anyone, but the brand that CSK is known for, that’s not there now,” Raina said on his Instagram, in a chat with Harbhajan Singh.
Raina questioned why CSK does not have many players from its home state of Tamil Nadu despite several talented players playing in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL).
“Look at how local players who have played in TNPL are doing. B Sai Sudharsan is doing well, he is playing for Gujarat Titans. R Sai Kishore and Shahrukh Khan are also playing for GT. You have to bring local players,” Raina further said.
“When we were winning, we had the likes of Murali Vijay, L Balaji, S Badrinath, myself, MS Dhoni, R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. When you don’t bring local flavour, it doesn’t work,” he added.
CSK’s veterans have struggled for form this season, with the likes of Ravindra Jadeja (Rs 18 crore) and R Ashwin (Rs 9.75 crore) not performing as expected.
On the other hand, CSK’s younger players have also not been able to deliver on a regular basis. Highly-rated overseas players like Rachin Ravindra and Matheesha Pathirana haven’t performed as well as previous seasons.
Raina also criticised CSK’s approach in IPL 2025, specially in batting.
“When we played in Chennai, we were not playing dot balls. Strike rotation wins matches. We played proper basic cricket. In the first six overs, we showed intent. And in the death, there were the likes of MS Dhoni and Albie Morkel. They used to play cameos. Because of all these, we were winning,” Raina said.
On Sunday, CSK were defeated by arch-rivals Mumbai Indians (MI) by a margin of nine wickets. Unbeaten knocks of 76 by Rohit Sharma and 68 by Suryakumar Yadav helped MI beat CSK with 26 balls to spare in their innings.
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