The Chennai Super Kings raced to their fourth IPL title in 2021, so what went wrong in 2022 that saw them perform so poorly? After looking back at some of the reasons for their recent failure. we can then try to work out what they need to focus on to make next season more successful.
A Look Back at Last Season
The 2022 season started badly, when MS Dhoni made the decision to step down as the team’s captain just before the first game. Ravindra Jadeja took over as captain but the Super Kings lost six out of their opening eight games to fall out of the running early. The captaincy was handed back to Dhoni after this, but that change didn’t really make any difference.
With a total of just eight points from their 14 games, Chennai finished in ninth place out of the ten teams, with only the Mumbai Indians below them in the table. A net run rate of 0.203 showed where many of their problems lay, and they just couldn’t find the consistency that they’ve been so highly praised for in the past.
There’s also no denying that CSK had some terrible luck with injuries. The loss of Deepak Chahar for the entire season was extremely damaging to their bowling prowess. Worse was to come, with Adam Milne getting injured in the first march and then Devon Conway missing half of the season due to the line-up reshuffle that was needed.
They took until their fifth game of the season to finally record a win, and by then the team’s confidence was shaken, meaning there was no way to fully recover. A total of ten losses and just four wins summed up their poor season.
Looking more deeply at the figures, we can see that their triumph in the 2021 season was based on Faf du Plessis and Ruturaj Gaikwad both getting over 600 runs. However, for the 2022 season, not one of their players managed to get more than 400. Gaikwad led the way with 368 runs, giving a disappointing average of just 26.28.
What to Expect from Next Season?
There’s no doubt that uncertainty over the captaincy of the team had a negative effect on the Super Kings in 2022. The decision to give the role to Jadeja was seen as a bold move to pass the leadership on to the next generation. However, the way it played out made it seem as though there are deeper problems in the team.
The added pressure of being the captain appeared to affect Jadeja’s game, and the switch back to Dhoni came after most of the damage to their season had already been done. This means that choosing a new captain for the upcoming season is one of the top priorities. If they get it right, it should give them a solid base to build from.
It’s worth remembering that the 2020 season was historic for being the first time that the Super Kings didn’t manage to qualify for the playoffs. Yet, they came back strongly to win the trophy the following season. So could exactly the same thing happen again now that they’re again coming off the back of a series of poor performances?
There’s no way we can write off a team with such a massively successful history behind them, but it seems likely that the Chennai Super Kings will be one of the outsiders for the title on the main IPL betting sites such as Parimatch, NEO.bet and 4raBet. There are hundreds of different betting markets on this popular league, so bettors aren’t limited to simply wagering on CSK winning the trophy.
One way that the team could see its chances boosted massively is by having a lot of success in the mega auction. For the 2022 season, the Super Kings broke the record for an Indian pace bowler when they paid INR 14 Crore for Deepak Chahar, and his return next season will hopefully see him join some exciting new signings. This event should occur in February 2023, and we’re sure to hear a lot of speculation about possible targets before then.
Fans of the Chennai team will be hoping that the series of misfortunes that ruined their last season are resolved by the time the next season begins. While there’s little they can do to avoid bad luck with injuries, a good series of incoming transfers and an early, solid decision on the captaincy should set them up for a better chance of success.
