Chennai Super Kings’ IPL 2026 review makes for grim reading.

For a franchise built on legacy and consistency, the five-time champion was let down by its muddled tactics.

Ruturaj Gaikwad’s men were always behind the eight ball in their pursuit of a top-four spot, missing the playoffs for the third consecutive year.

The campaign had a turbulent take-off and a terrible landing, bookended by three straight losses at the start and finish. It certainly didn’t help that the team’s growing injury list was in a constant tussle with the number of wins.

CSK, which finished on 12 points, rarely made optimum use of whoever was fit and available, evidenced by its reluctance to play Akeal Hosein. Five of CSK’s six victories came in the seven matches that the left-arm spinner took part in. The excuse of not having an overseas spot doesn’t hold water as Super Kings played some games with three foreigners.

Head coach Stephen Fleming never cracked the Impact Player rule. The most baffling deployment of the substitute came when Sarfaraz Khan was hastily sent in to bat in the fifth over of the first innings against Gujarat Titans after CSK had lost only two wickets.

Timid approach

Ruturaj’s timid approach (337 runs, 123.44 strike-rate) not only made CSK’s PowerPlay powerless but also put unnecessary pressure on Sanju Samson.

The journey of the ₹14.20 crore youngsters, Kartik Sharma and Prashant Veer, couldn’t have been more different. While the wicketkeeper-batter was given a long run at No. 4 (295 runs in 11 innings), the all-rounder batted too low (90 runs off 67 balls in five innings) and hardly bowled (two overs).

Anshul Kamboj, who was the first to take 10 wickets in the death overs, also holds the dubious record of being the only one to concede 500 runs in the season so far.

Then there was the M.S. Dhoni saga. The 44-year-old could have become the fourth player to feature in all IPL seasons, but he did not play and hardly travelled with the team.

The calf injury, supposed to sideline him for two weeks, took time to heal before a sore thumb delayed his return.

When asked if CSK was hopeful of Dhoni playing IPL 2027, bowling coach Eric Simons replied: “Are you seriously asking me that question? Only M.S. will know when he’s ready and he’ll decide in the best interest of the team.”

After the season it has endured, the Chennai outfit will have more questions than answers.