Following a seventh defeat in nine games in IPL 2025, Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming traced their struggles back to the auction.
"It is hard to say we got it completely right with the performances that we have had," he said after CSK's batting struggled once again to put up a decent total against Sunrisers Hyderabad. They were bowled out for 154 and lost by five wickets. "So we have been looking over that in detail just around our style of play. Also looking at how the game is evolving.
"And it is not easy. And that is why we are proud of our record today. We have been able to be consistent for so long and it doesn't take much for it to go another way. Other teams have got better and that is the point of the auction. But we just haven't been able to get it right."
CSK had tried to compensate for that by using players outside of their usual roles, having Ravindra Jadeja bat up the order, using Shivam Dube as a finisher, trying R Ashwin in the powerplay and asking MS Dhoni to bat a lot longer than he is able to given he is 43 years old and his knees aren't perfectly right.
"So you take responsibility from the top down and then you just ask a little more of the players," Fleming said. "But yeah, that has to be an area where we need to reflect and say it wasn't as good as what it could have been or it hasn't worked out how we wanted."
CSK are at the bottom of the table on run-rates and boundaries hit and are near the top of the table on dot-ball percentage. They came into this game having used 20 of 27 players and here they handed Dewald Brevis a debut and pushed their youngest ever player, Ayush Mhatre, up to open the batting. Unlike in past seasons, when CSK assembled numerous champion teams filled with players with clearly defined roles, they have been unable to settle on a combination this season.
"It is also not perfect science," Fleming said. "The auction is a very fluid beast. It's like buying [for] 25 hours and see it come away at the end of it mentally and sometimes physically exhausted. And to be fair, I still think we have got a good squad. We are not far away.
"A couple of key injuries, just a bit of a lack of form. And we have just struggled really to nail a gameplan. We've chopped and changed too much. I think it was trying to look for something that perhaps we felt wasn't there. So yeah, there is a lot of responsibility and soul-searching and it certainly starts with me at the top, 100%"
There is a feeling that CSK are too set in their ways - preferring experienced players, structuring their innings to start slow and finish strong - and this season might be pushing them towards new ways of thinking.
"I'm a believer that the game hasn't evolved that much," Fleming said. "So just trying to be smart and trying to be positive and give evidence that percentages still work. But all around there is a bit of chaos, isn't there, with teams playing well [by targeting boundaries and playing high-risk shots]. And I think I said it in a grumpy interview a few weeks ago that we'll see towards the end of the tournament which team will come through.
"And it's an intriguing watch to see settled sides and teams with younger sort of flair battling it out and watching the cream rise. And I will watch with interest to see towards the end what the highest run-scorers are and what teams are doing well, because that's part of the reflection as you move forward."
Some of that has already begun. "We've tried to bolt things on all the time," Fleming said. "I thought Brevis was excellent today [making 42 off 25]. Mhatre has been refreshing. We've given guys opportunities and that's something that often doesn't come along in an IPL. You don't want it to come along. It's an unwanted bonus. So we'll work very hard on every game to try and find some more answers for next year."
A strong crowd turned up in Chennai once again, just as they have all around the country to watch CSK play even though they have been struggling this season.
"Well, we are aware of the support and it is not just at home, it extends throughout India," Fleming said "We understand the effect that MS Dhoni has with our support, but when we see the amount of yellow that turns up game after game, certainly here at Chepauk, but when we are around the country experiencing that, there is a responsibility that we feel and it is a heavy one. And to not reward that with performances weighs very heavy on the group.
"When they come to play for Chennai, one of the things they look forward to is being yellow in front of a yellow crowd and to not perform up to our expectations, but more importantly the fans' expectations, leaves us very empty."