IPL 2025: CSK Go Six Years Without a Successful 180+ Target Chase
CSK's 180+ Chase Drought Continues
Chennai Super Kings fans have been put through the wringer this season, having seen their team triumph against their arch-nemesis and fellow five-time champions, Mumbai Indians, at the start of the competition, before tumbling to the foot of the table with five defeats on the bounce.
Following the victory over Mumbai, the Super Kings’ next four matches saw them batting second, and each of those games ended in defeat. Against RCB, Chennai only managed 146/8 chasing 196, while against Rajasthan, they came up six runs short of the 182-run target.
Match 17 of the 2025 IPL was a historic one, as DC secured victory over CSK in Chennai for the first time in 15 years, with the Men in Yellow only scoring 158/5 in response to 183/6, and while they did better against Punjab, getting to 201/5, they were chasing 219/6, meaning the match still ended in defeat.
While MS Dhoni and co finally got back to winning ways batting second against the Lucknow Super Giants this past Monday, they were chasing a modest total of 166/7, and even then, only managed to get over the line with three balls to spare.
With those results, the Chennai Super Kings have now failed to chase down a target of 180+ runs since 2018, when they beat the Sunrisers Hyderabad - a staggering statistic when considering they have won the IPL three times between 2018 and 2024!
Chennai have the IPL’s El-Clasico on the horizon, and our experts will be providing their in-depth MI vs. CSK prediction early this weekend.
Can 17-Year-Old Sensation Help Save CSK’s Season?
While Noor Ahmad and Khaleel Ahmed have been in great form with the ball for the Super Kings this season, the team’s batting lineup has largely failed to shine. As it stands, no CSK batsman currently ranks inside the top 15 run-scorers in the competition to date.
The five-time champions were dealt a major blow in that regard over the last weekend, with India international Ruturaj Gaikwad pulling out of the squad for the remainder of the competition due to an elbow injury sustained against RR on March 30.
As a result, Stephen Fleming has opted to call up highly-rated 17-year-old batter Ayush Mhatre as an injury replacement for Gaikwad, who had only scored a mere six runs in his two innings following the injury.
Mhatre went unsold at the IPL mega auction last year but was on the radar of CSK’s scouts after an impressive trial campaign before the season began. The teenager shone at the Vijay Hazare Trophy with 458 runs and followed up with 471 in the Ranji Trophy, scoring three centuries along the way.
There’s plenty of cricket on the schedule over the coming months, so be sure to keep an eye on our cricket predictions for more match news and key stats!
