Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming acknowledged that the team has been struggling to understand the conditions at Chepauk in recent years, after their 50-run loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in IPL 2025.
Despite assembling a spin-heavy squad at the auction, CSK failed to adapt to a surface that favored seam bowling. RCB pacers Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar capitalized on the conditions, combining for figures of 7-0-41-4 to derail CSK’s chase of 197 runs.
After CSK’s biggest defeat at home, Fleming admitted that Chepauk’s conditions have been unpredictable. “Well, as we’ve been telling you for a number of years, there was no home advantage at Chepauk. We’ve won away from home a couple of times. And we haven’t been able to read… we’ve been really honest with you. We haven’t been able to read the wickets here in the last couple of years. So, it’s not new. We are trying to come to grips each day with what we get, and we don’t know.”
Chepauk, once known for its spinner-friendly tracks, has undergone a drastic transformation. In IPL 2024, pacers took 74 wickets at the venue, while spinners managed just 25. Despite CSK’s strategy of focusing on spinners during squad selection, the conditions have not aligned with their strengths.
“It’s not the Chepauk [of old] where you can just go in and play four spinners,” Fleming acknowledged. “We’re having to work really hard to try and understand what the nature of each pitch is, and it’s quite different.”
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CSK had banked on dew playing a role in aiding their chase, but the surface slowed down instead, making stroke play increasingly difficult. “No, we didn’t get it right. It’s so hard to read, but we thought it was going to skid on with the dew, but it actually got a bit tacky. So, it certainly made it harder here.”
CSK’s methodical batting approach, which emphasizes building innings rather than explosive starts, came under scrutiny after the defeat. However, Fleming dismissed concerns about the lack of firepower in the squad.
“We talk about firepower; we have firepower all the way through,” he asserted. “I don’t understand this question. Just because we don’t swing from ball one and have a little bit of luck go away, we’ll see at the end. Just see at the end who wins it. It’s a positive brand of cricket, no doubt about it, but don’t discount us.”
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