IPL 2026: Can CSK bounce back after RCB humiliation in Bengaluru?

CSK are at the bottom of the IPL 2026 points table after losing to RR by 8 wickets, to PBKS by 5 wickets and to RCB by 43 runs.

The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) look like headless chickens. They’d got no answers to the questions asked. Team selection, usage, tactics, and performance. They are failing in each department. This humiliating defeat to the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) further proves this.

The disparity between the two teams was startling. Once RCB posted 250 on the board, you knew the match was over. One can’t imagine how a CSK admirer might feel watching a 5-time champion team getting spanked by every Tom, Dick, and Harry. But is there any light at the end of the tunnel for CSK? Can they make a miraculous comeback in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026?

A couple of positives

Despite a humbling by RCB, there were a couple of positives. Khaleel Ahmed and Anshul Kamboj were good with the new ball. Which means you don’t need to rely on any overseas fast bowler. Then you have Sarfaraz Khan and Ayush Mhatre. The Mumbaikers have impressed. The former struck a 24-ball fifty against RCB, while the latter was exceptional against the Punjab Kings.

One can add Prashant Veer among the positives. The 20-year-old has the ability to bat. In fact, he was their second-highest scorer after Sarfaraz. If he hadn’t stayed in, CSK wouldn’t have crossed the 150-mark, since Jamie Overton would’ve run out of partners. The biggest positives might be injured Dewald Brevis and MS Dhoni. The former will return soon and boost the middle-order batting. While the latter will improve the on-field tactics and decision-making, which has been rather shocking.

Countless negatives

But the positives end here. Now comes a long list of issues. To start with, CSK already lost at the IPL 2026 auction. They paid INR 28.40 crore for 2 uncapped batters, who they don’t really back. Prasant hasn’t bowled a ball for them yet. Kartik hasn’t entered great positions and wasn’t picked in one game.

The biggest issue has been usage. CSK played against RCB with just 3 overseas players. This shows that they messed up at the auction. Because if you feel your domestic talent is better than the foreign players, something has gone wrong. Jamie Overton wasn’t played against Punjab, and Ruturaj Gaikwad gave 2 overs to Shivam Dube despite Overton, a hit-the-deck bowler like him, but better.

Matt Short was given a game but chucked it away after he failed once. Matt Henry is playing when you already have 2 new-ball Indian fast bowlers in Khaleel and Kamboj. Nathan Ellis, who’s out with injury, was the only death-bowling option. His replacement, Spencer Johnson, won’t join them until late April, as he himself is injured and is also a new ball bowler like Henry. What is this planning?

Noor Ahmad’s control hasn’t improved, and the surface in Chennai isn’t spinning much anymore. His backup, Akeal Hosein, is also a powerplay bowler. Which means they don’t have a backup for him. Prashant, Ravindra Jadeja’s replacement, hasn’t been trusted with the ball. So, you don’t really have more than one spinner at the moment.

Let’s come to batting now. Sanju Samson’s out of form. 22 runs in 3 matches. He’ll come back into form. But his batting partner and CSK captain Gaikwad is looking like the weakest batter on the team sheet. Since he’s opening, Ayush Mhatre can’t pair up with Samson. Urvil Patel, who has an IPL strike rate of 212.50, can’t find a spot because of him. Sarfaraz, their best batter yet, can’t play in the top five. When Brevis comes in, where will he bat?