CSK vs KKR, IPL 2025: Focus on captain Dhoni as Chennai Super Kings aims to snap losing streak against Kolkata Knight Riders

There have never been two consecutive Indian Premier League (IPL) finals without the presence of M.S. Dhoni. The former India captain has graced the summit clash on eleven occasions since the league’s advent in 2008. 

The incredible record, however, is under substantial threat unless the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) can swing its fortunes by snapping a four-match losing streak.

The five-time IPL-winning captain will return to helm the Super Kings when it takes on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Friday, after captain Ruturaj Gaikwad was ruled out of the tournament with an elbow fracture.

Now 43 years of age, Dhoni has been called into action with the bat in each of CSK’s five games this season, scoring 103 runs in 67 balls at a strike rate of 153.73. But, there has been a marked difference in comparison to his exploits of yore – he has failed to take the team past the finish line in four of those chases.

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During these four encounters, CSK needed an average of 78 runs off the last five overs at a required rate of 13 per over. The side’s run rate between overs 11 and 15 is the worst among the ten teams in the league (7.80), indicating that it has been keeping too many runs for the batters to hunt down in the death overs. 

“We’re not trying to leave too much [for the death], but whether it’s good bowling or we lose wickets at the wrong time, it’s just holding us back. We need someone to match what the opposition has done,” head coach Stephen Fleming said on the eve of the encounter. 

CSK‘s Ruturaj Gaikwad and coach Stephen Fleming during the practice session.
| Photo Credit:
RAGU R/The Hindu

Gaikwad’s injury could pave the way for Rahul Tripathi’s reinclusion in the XI. The Maharashtra batter’s boundary percentage is the highest during the opening six overs (22.39 per cent), and that could force the team to push Rachin Ravindra down to three in the batting line-up. 

Another scathing issue for the home side has been the haemorrhage of runs with the ball in the PowerPlay. CSK has the second-worst PowerPlay economy rate in the competition, behind only the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). 

Despite Khaleel Ahmed’s wicket-taking ability with the new ball, the bowlers from the other end have failed to keep the pressure on, none more so than R. Ashwin, who has the worst economy rate for any bowler with more than one over in this phase (15.60).

Ashwin’s figures show massive improvement in the middle overs – he has conceded at just 7.50 rpo and has picked up four wickets. CSK might be better off using his quota entirely through the middle, and using its chief wicket-taker Noor Ahmad, who has a career economy rate of 7.14 in the PowerPlay in T20s. The left-arm wrist spinner, however, has bowled only two overs in this phase in the IPL, suggesting it could be an option with a tinge of jeopardy.   

The Knight Riders’ concern, on the other hand, will be about its lower-order batting. The defeats against the Mumbai Indians and LSG, though polar opposite in nature, stemmed from the lack of runs from the middle-order. Andre Russell is yet to tee off in his inimitable style, while Ramandeep Singh and Rinku Singh too have failed to play an innings of note. 

The Ajinkya Rahane-led team will also bank on better returns from ace spinner Sunil Narine, who has picked up only two scalps and is in the midst of his most expensive IPL season to date. 

A victory for the host could go a long way in revitalising its season, whereas the visitor will aim to better its win-loss ratio in the hope of climbing its way up the compact points table.