In the latest IPL 2025 clash between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), MS Dhoni’s leadership came under scrutiny. Following an injury to Ruturaj Gaikwad, Dhoni had to step up, but the team’s performance in the powerplay overs left much to be desired. CSK could only manage 18 runs for 2 wickets after the first five overs, setting a poor tone for the rest of the game.
After the defeat at home, Dhoni defended his conservative approach in the powerplay, stating, “If we start looking for 60 with our lineup, it will be very difficult for us.” However, former CSK opener, Matthew Hayden, had a very different take on the matter. According to him, Dhoni’s cautious strategy would only leave the team playing catch-up. He pointed out that the wicket was a high-scoring one and didn’t believe in going slow.
“I genuinely felt like this was a 180-plus wicket. I looked at that surface. It looked like a good surface. It was hard black soil, and you know, you hear MS Dhoni talk there about the powerplay. Simon Katich asked him a question and his response was, look, we’ve just got to be conservative. We’ve got to play, the whole 20 overs. I disagree. You know, when you’re giving away 30 runs. That’s exactly what happened tonight inside the powerplay. KKR was 60. CSK was 30,” Hayden said on JioStar.
Hayden made it clear that the 30-run deficit CSK faced in the powerplay was too much, especially considering the nature of the game. He stated that this gap was too significant to recover from in an IPL match.
“30 is often a multiple of 5 times the advantage that you can afford to give away in an IPL. They’re often 4 or 5 runs. KKR’s last match that they lost to LSG, they lost by 4 runs, so it’s so significant, I believe that CSK get into that space where they’re catching up to the tournament, and they’re actually leading from the front. You get caught if you play catch-up.”
Hayden emphasized that CSK’s reliance on a conservative strategy is harming their key players, such as Shivam Dube and MS Dhoni, who have been forced into difficult situations due to the lack of runs in the early overs. He firmly believes that playing catch-up is not the way forward in IPL.
“They’ve got good enough players. Being conservative, they’re also cutting their sharp men and sharpshooters like Shivam Dube and MS Dhoni himself, who’s under so much pressure at the back end and having to play catch-up. In my experience, you’re not supposed to catch up. You get caught if you’re thinking that way, and that’s exactly what unfolded in front of us this evening,” said the former Australian cricketer.
With CSK struggling in the tournament and sitting in ninth place with five losses from six games, their next challenge will be against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on April 14. It remains to be seen whether Dhoni and his team will change their approach and find a way to turn their fortunes around.
