IPL 2026: Gaikwad 'proud' of CSK's performance amid transition
What's the story
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has expressed pride in his team's performance during what he termed a "transition phase." Despite finishing the IPL 2026 season with six wins and eight defeats from their 14 games, CSK managed to keep their playoff hopes alive until the last league match. The team started the season with injuries and three consecutive losses, but found momentum mid-season before losing it again due to more injuries.
Injury impact
Injuries disrupted CSK's momentum, feels Gaikwad
Following CSK's last league game against Gujarat Titans on Thursday, Gaikwad noted that injuries to seam-bowling allrounders Jamie Overton and Ramakrishna Ghosh late in the season disrupted their momentum. He said, "Well, tough season to start, especially the hat-trick of losses, and then after that once we found that momentum, obviously we found guys playing at the right spot, the right combination, everything started working, a couple of injuries again and again didn't really help much." The captain acknowledged these setbacks but also highlighted the exposure young players got this year.
Missed chances
Two SRH losses were missed opportunities for CSK
Gaikwad highlighted two losses to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) as missed opportunities for CSK. He recalled the Hyderabad match where they failed to chase down 84 runs in 10 overs with seven wickets in hand. "When we traveled to Hyderabad, we missed out on chasing [84] in 10 overs, and then even last time when we played in Chennai, we could have restricted them to 180, so a couple of games where we could have just got over the line, failed to do that, but still very much proud."
Player performance
Youngsters step up for CSK in tough season
Despite CSK's traditional preference for older, experienced players, Gaikwad was impressed by the performance of some young players this season. He mentioned Kartik Sharma and Urvil Patel as promising talents who have a lot of potential to improve. "Not many people actually buy the fact that we are a young team, we are in a transition phase, and [we don't have] a lot of players who are experienced enough, especially in the toughest competition. But given the fact that [we have] eight to 10 players who have played just below 20 games, it's good to have that exposure for them, especially this year.
Information
Gaikwad's paltry returns with the bat
Gaiwad himself had a hard time with the bat this season. He managed just 337 runs across 14 games at 28.08. This includes two fifties and a paltry strike rate of 123.44. His regular failures at the top hurt the Super Kings big time.
Dhoni's status
What next for Dhoni in IPL?
When asked about MS Dhoni's future in IPL, Gaikwad said, "You'll get to know it next year itself." He stressed the importance of the veteran cricketer for CSK and how much they missed him this season due to injury. The captain acknowledged that while they were happy with their current squad, having someone like Dhoni would have made a huge difference in their performance this year.