Chennai Super Kings are all but out of the play-off race mathematically in IPL 2020 after their massive loss to Mumbai Indians at Sharjah. This will be the first time that MS Dhoni’s side will not make it to the knockout stage in the entire history of the Indian Premier League and some are calling it the ‘end of an era’.
Chennai Super Kings suffered a humiliating 10-wicket loss against Mumbai Indians in the IPL 2020 clash at the Sharjah cricket stadium on Friday. This was the first time in the entire history of the IPL that Chennai Super Kings had been thrashed by 10 wickets. With the loss, Chennai Super Kings’ playoff chances have taken a hit even mathematically and it will require a miraculous choke by the remaining four teams to help MS Dhoni’s side stay alive in the contest. Following the end of the match, many analysts called it ‘the end of a great era’ while noted cricket commentator and analyst Harsha Bhogle tweeted, “CSK is looking like an ageing boxer in the ring against younger fighters who are throwing more punches than he can handle.”
MS Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings captain, admitted that he and the team were hurt a lot after the loss. With just three games to go, Chennai Super Kings can hope to only get to 12 points but looking at the current mood and confidence of the team, it does not look good and this might be the first time that Chennai Super Kings do not even get to double digits when it comes to the points table. What have been the reasons for Chennai Super Kings’ dramatic downfall in IPL 2020? Was it in the making? Or did other teams just played better? Here is an analysis
Q. ) Did the coronavirus outbreak before the start of IPL 2020 impact Chennai Super Kings’ preparation and mindset?
Even before IPL 2020 started, Chennai Super Kings were on the receiving end of the coronavirus pandemic. 13 members of the contingent, including two players in Deepak Chahar and Ruturaj Gaikwad, tested positive for COVID19. The outbreak of the coronavirus had two massive fallouts. Suresh Raina decided to opt-out of the tournament due to personal reasons and Harbhajan Singh decided to pull out also for the same reason. In one stroke, Chennai Super Kings lost their ‘gun’ player in the middle order and the bowler who could keep the opposition tied down on a leash. Even before the tournament started, Chennai Super Kings had lost 33 years of experience.
There was also another big issue. Chennai Super Kings were the last team to practice for the IPL 2020. Although they won the first game, the effects of not having acclimatised to the conditions hurt them as the tournament progressed.
Q) Did the pull-out of Suresh Raina reportedly due to the rift with MS Dhoni impact the team mentally?
We will never know if Suresh Raina had a difference of opinion with MS Dhoni over his hotel room. We will never know if Raina had a rift with Dhoni as no one has said anything officially or publicly about it. One can only say this. The pull-out of Suresh Raina decimated the middle order and upset the entire team composition which was evident in IPL 2020
Q) What was the major reason for Chennai Super Kings’ failure - batting, bowling or fielding?
Both! The batting and the bowling let Chennai Super Kings down big time in this IPL. It all began at the top. Murali Vijay and Shane Watson were struggling. Then Faf du Plessis came in but Watson struggled apart from one match. It was also a case of bad luck. Ambati Rayudu, their in-form player got injured at a crucial time and it robbed the team of balance. Chennai Super Kings’ troubles began when Rayudu was injured and they never recovered.
Q) Why has the ‘lack of intent’ being harped upon for Chennai Super Kings and MS Dhoni in the death overs?
If one is an MS Dhoni fan, you must be aware that he follows a particular blueprint when it comes to chasing in the death overs. MS Dhoni likes to take the game deep. He likes it to take it to the last ball. This strategy and blueprint worked well for the last three-four years. However, in 2020, bowlers seem to have worked him out. The same blueprint was exposed to some flaws. The discipline shown by Delhi Capitals, Sunrisers Hyderabad during the death overs against Chennai Super Kings exposed this flaw. Chennai Super Kings and MS Dhoni simply had too much to do. In 2020, one saw the flip side of MS Dhoni’s ‘taking it deep’ blueprint. In IPL 2020, his six-hitting, which helped him benefit so much in the death overs, went missing. In this tournament alone, he has hit less than 10 sixes and it is far less than his average number of sixes he hit per game in IPL in 2018 and 2019. His missing sixes played a huge role in Chennai Super Kings not crossing the finish line.
Q) Was MS Dhoni’s captaincy flawed? Did his tactics and comments not help the team?
MS Dhoni could manage with what he had. Everybody criticised him for getting Ravindra Jadeja to bowl the final over against Delhi Capitals with two left-handers. However, Dwayne Bravo had suffered an injury and he was not on the field. On instinct, Dhoni thought that Jadeja would be a better option but it backfired. For being the greatest captain ever, one has to give the benefit of doubt to Dhoni when it came to balancing resources.
However, some of his comments were problematic. His ‘youngsters lacked spark’ comment did not go down well with many people as the youngsters had not gotten many chances in ‘Dad’s Army’. His argument that he had not played so much cricket and that was the reason he did not promote himself to No.4 simply dented the confidence of the side. Dhoni also raised a few eyebrows by not showing enough fighting spirit by immediately stating that his side was out of the play-off race although they were still in it mathematically after the loss against Rajasthan Royals
Q) Why did Imran Tahir play only in the 11th game and that too when the campaign was over?
This is perhaps the biggest conundrum. Imran Tahir was the leading wicket-taker for Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2020. In conditions that were tailor-made for him, he was on the bench. The assessment from Dhoni that four overseas players had already sealed their place in the squad which meant there was no room for Tahir simply lacks belief. Tahir could have been a controlling option in the middle or death overs for Chennai Super Kings. Instead, he arrived in a deflated environment and underwhelmed against Mumbai Indians. In spinning conditions, Dhoni did not play Tahir. It will be one of the greatest mysteries in IPL 2020
Q) What is the road ahead for CSK and MS Dhoni?
The Chennai Super Kings management is not at all happy about how things have panned out in IPL 2020. There are reports that a total overhaul in the system will be implemented in IPL 2021. Whether MS Dhoni will be at the helm is a big question. Already, there are multiple reports which suggest Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh’s time is up at the franchise. With IPL 2021 just six months away, maybe Dad’s Army will be overhauled totally.
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