The five-time champions have now lost their opening two matches of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL), and find themselves at the foot of the standings.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has called a bad day in the office for their bowling department as the main reason for their defeat to Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Friday, April 3. The five-time champions have now lost their opening two matches of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL), and find themselves at the foot of the standings.
Despite posting a competitive 209 on the board while batting first, CSK fell to a five-wicket loss after Shreyas Iyer’s side chased down the target with eight balls to spare. The hosts lacked control in their bowling, with the likes of Iyer, Cooper Connolly, and Priyansh Arya able to score freely. The latter picked up the Player of the Match following his quick-fire 39 off just 11 deliveries whilst opening the batting.
Gaikwad stated that going into the run chase, CSK had an adequate number of fast and spin-bowling options. However, neither department lived up to expectations, which eventually cost them the match.
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“We felt we had three seamers going in, and obviously we have two good wrist spinners bowling in tandem, especially in the middle after the powerplay. We felt that, you know, it will help. But I think, you know, slight off day for both of them. So, I think, that is what cost us. Sometimes we executed really well. Sometimes we just didn’t execute at the right time. There was a point when it (required run-rate) went to 11, and a couple of good overs would have taken it to 12-13. We just did not get momentum in the middle (with the ball),” Gaikwad said after the match.
Both Matt Henry and Anshul Kamboj picked up two wickets each. However, they were by no means effective in the game, having gone for an economy rate of 13.50 and 11.72, respectively.
CSK have little time to regroup following their defeat to PBKS. The team in yellow will now travel to face defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Sunday, April 5, at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
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