Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina blamed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) management for the team's dismal display in IPL 2025, claiming that MS Dhoni had little involvement in auction strategy, which is believed to be the main reason behind the franchise’s downfall.
Having lost seven of their nine matches, CSK are staring at a first-round exit from the ongoing IPL. They are currently languishing at the bottom of the 10-team points table.
In their last fixture, the five-time champions suffered a comprehensive five-wicket defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Chepauk on Friday (April 25).
Desperate to change their fortunes, CSK have used 20 out of their 27-player squad so far. In their most recent outing, they handed a debut to Dewald Brevis and promoted Ayush Mhatre to open the innings. However, the move didn’t bring positive result to them.
"Kashi sir - I think he has been handling the administration for almost 30 to 40 years now. And Rupa Ma'am is managing all the cricket administration - buying the players, maintaining the core group. But everyone knows that the players bought this time weren't selected properly," Raina said while speaking on Star Sports.
"They always say MS Dhoni makes the final call. But to be very honest, I never attended any of the auctions. I was never a part of those discussions. I always talked about the players who were retained. MS might get a call about whether to go ahead with a player or not - but he's not that involved," he added.
Raina also highlighted the difference between Dhoni's commitment and the uninspiring efforts of others.
"The core group handles the auction - you can imagine, Dhoni can’t have this type of auction. He would maybe name four or five players he wants, and out of them, a few would be retained. Even if an uncapped player is working hard, look at MS Dhoni-—being a 43-year-old captain, still giving everything."
"He's playing just for the brand, for his name, for the fandom - and still putting in the effort. At 43, he's doing wicketkeeping, captaining, carrying the entire team on his shoulders. But what are the other ten players doing?"
"Those who are paid Rs 18 crores, Rs 17 crores, Rs 12 crores - they're not responding to the captain. Especially when you've never lost to certain teams before - that needs to be rectified. You have to identify - is this player a match-winner?"
"Can I trust this player in the next match? There are players who've been playing there for years - even the older ones. But what are the results? You're losing. The same mistakes are happening every time."
Raina concluded by suggesting that a major overhaul could be on the cards, possibly led by Dhoni himself.
"I think MS Dhoni will now sit down - he won't want anyone around him. He must have made up his mind. After the toss, when they lost, the way he walked - and both of them were standing there - it's clear there's going to be a meeting today," Raina remarked.
