Chennai Super Kings (CSK), the five-time IPL Champions known for their consistency and tactical moves which usually leads them to success, find themselves in an unfamiliar position this season. CSK is at the bottom of the points table with just 2 wins out of their 9 matches, marking their worst IPL season till date.

The main reasons of CSK’s struggles in IPL 2025 are a combination of poor auction strategy, some important players getting injured, very weak & out of form batting line-up, horrible fielding performances, and being unable to find a proper & effective playing 11 combination despite playing half of their matches in IPL 2025.

POS	Team	P	W	L	NR	NRR	FOR	AGAINST	PTS	Recent Form
1	Gujarat Titans (GT)	8	6	2	0	1.104	1550/153.5	1431/159.3	12	W W L W W
2	Delhi Capitals (DC)	8	6	2	0	0.657	1474/151.1	1449/159.2	12	W L W L W
3	Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)	9	6	3	0	0.482	1560/166.4	1490/167.5	12	W W L W L
4	Punjab Kings (PBKS)	9	5	3	1	0.177	1405/148.3	1405/151.2	11	N L W W L
5	Mumbai Indians (MI)	9	5	4	0	0.673	1530/162.2	1568/179.1	10	W W W W L
6	Lucknow Super Giants (LSG)	9	5	4	0	-0.054	1705/175.4	1690/173.1	10	L W L W W
7	Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)	9	3	5	1	0.212	1238/147.4	1219/149.1	7	N L L W L
8	Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)	9	3	6	0	-1.103	1618/177.1	1665/162.4	6	W L L W L
9	Rajasthan Royals (RR)	9	2	7	0	-0.625	1672/180.0	1735/175.0	4	L L L L L
10	Chennai Super Kings (CSK)	9	2	7	0	-1.302	1440/178.4	1540/164.3	4	L L W L L

Also Read: Impactful Overseas players in IPL 2025

(1) Poor Auction Strategy

Chennai Super Kings team at the IPL Auction 2025 | sportzpoint.com — Chennai Super Kings team at the IPL Auction 2025

From the Auction Table only, CSK’s management started making mistakes by failing to grab impactful players who could fill the gaps in their squad.

Instead of investing in young and in-form players, the management made some confusing choices by buying mediocre players with poor form like Rahul Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, and Vijay Shankar, especially with a few key players nearing the end of their careers like Ravichandran Ashwin.

Former CSK great, also known as “Mr. IPL”, Suresh Raina has publicly criticised CSK’s poor auction strategy by pointing out the missed opportunities to buy match-winning players like KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Faf Du Plessis, etc., due to a lack of funds.

While other franchises focused on acquiring young and dynamic talent, CSK appeared to rely heavily on their tried-and-tested players like Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway, Sam Curran, etc., who are unable to perform in crucial situations for CSK in IPL 2025.

CSK’s management overlooked many promising domestic and overseas players who have been performing nicely in other T20 leagues, which resulted in a poor out-of-form bunch of players.

Some auction picks like Noor Ahmad and Khaleel Ahmed were great buys for CSK in IPL 2025, as these 2 players are performing really well and clinching wickets on a regular basis.

Also Read: IPL 2025: Where's what each team need to do to qualify for the playoffs

(2) Batting Collapses in almost every match

Batting Collapses in almost every match has been one of the reasons of CSK's struggles in IPL 2025 | sportzpoint.com — Batting Collapses in almost every match has been one of the reasons of CSK's struggles in IPL 2025

CSK’s batting has been one of the weakest in this season. Their top-order batsmen like Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, and Ruturaj Gaikwad have failed to perform consistently, and batted with a very low strike-rate in power-play which leads the team one step backwards from the start of the game.

The middle-order batsmen like Deepak Hooda, Shivam Dubey, and Vijay Shankar have failed to capitalize in the middle overs, and batted with a slow strike rate, and poor shot selection, which made most of their chases or first innings totals look below par.

Even their reliable lower order batters or finishers like Ravindra Jadeja and Mahendra Singh Dhoni haven't been able to rescue them as they are also out of form and being overburdened with responsibility. So, the lack of a proper finisher is glaring.

Also Read: Top 5 game-changing factors that could send MI to IPL 2025 Playoffs

Some young and new batters of CSK like Shaik Rasheed, Ayush Mhatre, and Dewald Brewis who got a chance to play from the previous 2-3 matches have performed nicely and played exceptionally well and showed potential that they can be the future stars of CSK.

After the recent loss against Sunrisers Hyderabad, MS Dhoni highlighted the problems because of which CSK is continuously losing matches this season.

His words were, “In a tournament like this, if there are one or two areas to plug in the holes, then it's good, but when a majority of the players are not doing well, then you need to make changes. You can’t just keep going. We are just not putting enough runs on the board”, while addressing the post-match presentation.

Also Read: Glenn Maxwell in IPL Since 2024

(3) Poor Fielding and Catch Drops at Crucial Moment

CSK have dropped the most catches so far in IPL 2025 | sportzpoint.com — CSK have dropped the most catches so far in IPL 2025

CSK’s fielding, which was a strength for them earlier, has been horrible this year. CSK has dropped 13-14 catches in IPL 2025 till now which is most by any team this season and after these catch drops of important players at crucial moments, all those players scored a good number of runs and lead their respective teams to a very good total or chased the runs made by CSK.

In a highly competitive league like the IPL, every run saved with a good fielding effort makes a difference and creates pressure on the opposition, but CSK has failed to do this in this IPL season, which is one of the reasons for CSK’s struggles in IPL 2025.

MS Dhoni’s wicket-keeping skills is the only thing which deserves appreciation when CSK is fielding. At the age of 43, Dhoni’s wicket-keeping is still lethal with lightning-fast stumping and very smooth ball receiving technique.

CSK’s bowling has also been very outstanding this season. Bowlers of CSK, like Khaleel Ahmed and Noor Ahmad, have taken crucial wickets continuously. They have been able to create chances with their effective bowling, but the fielders were not able to grab those chances and take advantage of them.

Also Read: IPL Facts: Lowest Total Defended in IPL

(4) Important Players Getting Injured

Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of IPL 2025 because of injury and Devon Conway have returned to New Zealand because his Father passed away | sportzpoint.com — Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of IPL 2025 because of injury and Devon Conway have returned to New Zealand

Ruturaj Gaikwad, the Captain of CSK, got injured and was ruled out of this IPL, which made the CSK batting line-up very weak and inexperienced. Devon Conway has to return to New Zealand because his father passed away.

After Gaikwad’s exclusion from the playing 11 because of an unfortunate injury, MS Dhoni has again become the Captain of CSK and Ayush Mhatre has been signed by the CSK management as a replacement for Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Also Read: IPL 2025, CSK vs KKR: CSK's five lowest totals in IPL history

(5) Where will the CSK team go from here?

Poor Batting Performance and Horrible Display of Fielding shows CSK's struggles in IPL 2025 | sportzpoint.com — Poor Batting Performance and Horrible Display of Fielding shows CSK's struggles in IPL 2025

After losing 7 out of 9 matches, and with 5 games left, only CSK’s qualifying chances for IPL 2025 Play-offs are practically gone. Even MS Dhoni seems to be looking ahead to next season, as after their recent loss to Mumbai Indians, Dhoni highlighted the importance of getting a secured playing XI for the next year, while addressing the post-match presentation.

As the season progresses, one thing is clear: CSK's struggles in IPL 2025 serve as a reminder that even the most successful teams need to evolve and adapt to the current playing style to stay competitive.

If CSK wants to bounce back next season, they need figure out what went wrong in 2025 and correct those things as soon as possible. The auction errors, poor on-field execution, poor display of batting & fielding, and over-reliance on aging players have all contributed to a season they’ll want to forget.

The Chennai Super Kings have built a legacy over the years. But this year, that legacy has taken a hit and only a superb comeback in the next season of IPL can earn them their respect again which CSK deserves, and as we all know that CSK is also known as the Comeback Super Kings so every CSK fan will pray for their team’s strong comeback in the next season of IPL.

Saket Shaw

Stories by Saket Shaw

CSK’s Struggles in IPL 2025: A Season to Forget?

CSK’s Struggles in IPL 2025: A Season to Forget?