Chennai Super Kings (CSK), one of the most successful teams in the Indian Premier League (IPL), is in danger of another lackluster season after suffering a hat-trick of defeats in the initial phase of the ongoing league. CSK fans and cricket experts expressed concern over the team’s top order, as their openers Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad failed to perform well after playing three consecutive matches.
Currently, the 5-time league winners are at the bottom of the IPL 2026 points table, despite making some expensive signings ahead of the season. CSK will play against the informed team, Delhi Capitals (DC) in the upcoming game.
When CSK brought in Sanju Samson in place of Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran, discussions started on social media platforms. Samson’s credibility as a batsman in limited overs cricket is unquestionable.
But, over the years, the talented top-order batsman has struggled with inconsistency. He is going through another bad phase with Chennai Super Kings. In the last three matches, the star keeper-batsman, who was considered the replacement for team icon Mahendra Singh Dhoni, was out cheaply.
Both Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad have been disappointing so far this season.
Captain and Sanju Samson’s opening partner Ruturaj Gaikwad has also failed to impress so far. The top-order batsman, who has experience and a lot of runs in domestic tournaments, is enjoying the support of the CSK team management, but positive results are yet to come.
Gaikwad was appointed the captain of Chennai Super Kings in 2024. As captain of the team, he recorded 7 consecutive defeats. This season, the top-order batsman has scored just 41 runs in three matches so far. The experienced opening pair of Samson and Gaikwad have scored 62 runs so far in the ongoing competition.
Anil Kumble expressed concern over Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Former India cricketer and great spinner, Anil Kumble mentioned that apart from these two openers and MS Dhoni, who is currently under the rehabilitation process, the team’s batting line-up is mostly inexperienced. Therefore, as senior batsmen, they have to ensure a solid start at the beginning of the innings.
“This is a big concern for Chennai. If your two most experienced batsmen, Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad, have not performed well in the first three matches, then it becomes a serious challenge. Apart from Samson and MS Dhoni, the rest of the batting line-up is quite young”, Anil Kumble explained CSK’s moment of real crisis while speaking on Star Sports.
*You need at least one of your experienced batsmen to step up and play big innings. Unfortunately, things did not go Chennai’s way in the first three matches. It’s still early in the season, but they will need to tighten things up quickly,” he added.
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