Following their six-wicket defeat to the Rajasthan Royals, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are very set to end up as the IPL 2025 wooden spoon bearers.

The sizable Tuesday audience, which included adults, kids, and elderly people, braved the sweltering heat and a workday to be at Kotla to loudly cheer MS Dhoni & Co. by wearing yellow jerseys and whistling whenever they could.

However, CSK was once again let down by their confused strategy, which included giving Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja a promotion above Dewald Brevis and Shivam Dube, as well as their bowling’s complete lack of penetration.

Head coach Stephen Fleming had discussed how crucial it is for them to end the season on a high note before Tuesday’s match. However, CSK’s eleventh loss of the season against RR served as yet another reminder that they are well behind the T20 curve. Fleming’s statement that CSK’s likelihood of finishing last in the points table is “probably fitting” was thus not shocking.

“Obviously, we don’t like being down here, but that doesn’t motivate us. All we hoped for was a strong performance. Our goal is to connect a few performances. Two strong performances were the goal. There will only be one decent one left to complete.

The fact that we’re at the bottom is perhaps appropriate. You can’t avoid that because we’ve played that kind of cricket. During the news conference after the game, Fleming said, “But we do want to just put a much better performance on the paddock that reflects the ability of the team.”

Even though CSK’s 187/8 after losing half of their team at 78 was admirable, it was never going to be enough to defeat a driven RR team that prevailed thanks to their youthful players rising to the challenge.

A few youngsters also received instruction in Chennai. Simply said, there was some travel involved. The rest is OK, but I believe it has more to do with where we are on the table. If you’re in the top four or five, it’s much simpler to get back on track and get inspired.

“All we want to do is try to put on strong performances in the park.” We have been really motivated for these two games. The instruction has been effective. The level of intensity was acceptable. We’re just not doing well in the middle once again,” Fleming said.

CSK would be happy with how Ayush Mhatre and Dewald Brevis performed on Tuesday despite all the craziness. They made 43 and 42, respectively, and showed some incredible shots. Even though CSK scored 68 runs during the power play, which has been the main source of their demise, they lost three wickets, including Mhatre, which hindered their attempt to reach 200.

We are always seeking to rework our order since it isn’t perfect right now. In order to address every aspect, we have some solid plans for next year. However, the absence of runs at the top this year has made that impossible.

“How well we start determines a lot of the batting positions, after which guys can fall into line.” We haven’t had that, and instead of building strong innings, we’ve basically just been patching innings up,” Fleming said.

CSK decided to keep Matheesha Pathirana before the 2025 Indian Premier League since he has been a shell of his former self when it comes to getting wickets and managing runs. With a slingy bowling motion, Pathirana has claimed 12 wickets in 11 games, but his economy rate of 10.17 indicates that he has been quite costly.

It hasn’t lived up to our expectations. We kept him on board because we have great hopes for him. However, he is returning in some capacity. When we had him in South Africa, he was in terrible shape. Although he has improved, neither he nor we are satisfied. I suppose there is some space for him to get some shape and confidence.

However, I believe he’s just at a turning point in his career when batsmen are playing him more effectively. They’ve seen him more. He now just has to focus on what he must do to be as successful as he was in the early years of his career. Although it has been a touch off, it’s a unique skill set,” Fleming said.

Seamer Anshul Kamboj held his own in New Delhi, collecting 1-21, including dismissing a furious Yashasvi Jaiswal, despite their bowling being dismal this season. Fleming praised Kamboj for his seam movement in keeping the RR openers quiet during his selection for the India “A” tour of England.

“Kamboj is excellent; his speeds of 138–139 are misleading since his balls strike the keeper’s hands more forcefully. His length is his greatest asset, and on a flat wicket, he just makes the ball tremble. He’ll do well on that tour, in my opinion.

“He’ll be a real handful if he gets some swing and conditions that seam around.” As another challenging night for CSK came to a conclusion, he said, “We’re happy with his development and the opportunity he’s taken this year. He has some real potential with both white and red (balls).”