243 matches, 216 matches as the captain: MS Dhoni has seen Chennai Super Kings grow and evolve. He led the team to five IPL titles. But now, he is witnessing his yellow empire fall, match by match. It would have been ideal had he retired after lifting the title in 2023. However, as Dhoni has stayed on, returning as the captain of CSK once again, he will be disheartened with how CSK have done in IPL 2025. On Friday, it was another heartbreaking lesson for him as CSK slumped to a 5-wicket loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad, virtually ending their hopes of IPL 2025 playoffs.
SRH chased down the 154-run target in 18.4 overs. Ishan Kishan played a mature knock of 34-ball 44 on a pitch that was difficult to bat on. But it was Nitish Kumar Reddy and Kamindu Mendis who applied the finishing touch after SRH were down to 106/5 in 13.5 overs. Reddy-Mendis put up an unbeaten 49-run stand. With 6 points from 9 matches, SRH jumped to 8th place and keep their playoff hopes alive.
The bizarre show
Yes, the Chpeauk pitch was slow. But it was nowhere close to being unplayable. Ayush Mhatre showed that with 19-ball 30, as CSK dropped Rachin Ravindra to have the 4th opening pair in IPL 2025. But the youngster, Shaik Rasheed, drew a blank. At No 3, CSK’s experiment to have Sam Curran fell flat as the English all-rounder scored 9. By the end of powerplay, Mhatre fell for 30, only to have Ravindra Jadeja bat at No 4 after his fifty against Mumbai Indians.
Jadeja played a measured knock of 53. But those who did not follow the match, Jadeja took 15 balls. For his first 20 balls, Jadeja had a strike rate of just 100. CSK might have similar plans on Friday. But the all-rounder lasted 17 deliveries, scoring 21.
Shivam Dube at No 6, this time, scored 12 off 9. Deepak Hooda was dropped and then brought back for the CSK vs SRH match, scoring 22 off 21. While that might seem a poor knock, had he not scored those runs, CSK would not have crossed 150.
Only a catch like that could’ve stopped that cameo from Brevis! Kamindu Mendis, take a bow #CSK 119/6 after 14 overs.Updates t.co/26D3UalRQi#TATAIPL | #CSKvSRH | @SunRisers pic.twitter.com/NvthsQfpUj
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 25, 2025The Dewald Brevis phase
All was not gloomy for CSK, though. Their another mid-season signing, Dewald Brevis, who delivered on debut in yellow. He had eight dot balls in 25-ball knock. But Brevis kept rotating strikes and just when he started unleashing the big shots, hitting three sixes against Kamindu Mendis, he was denied. Mendis took the catch of the season to deny Brevis his maiden IPL fifty.
But it was still an entertaining knock. He hit four sixes while the other batters in CSK combined hit two. CSK have been the worst side in terms of hitting sixes. They have hit a total of 49 sixes in IPL 2025. The next worst is KKR, but they have still hit 61.
Most Sixes in IPL 2025
Rajasthan Royals (RR): 90 sixes Lucknow Super Giants (LSG): 89 sixes Punjab Kings (PBKS): 78 sixes Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB): 76 sixes Mumbai Indians (MI): 74 sixes Delhi Capitals (DC): 68 sixes Gujarat Titans (GT): 65 sixes Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH): 64 sixes Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR): 61 sixes Chennai Super Kings (CSK): 49 sixesHowever, with Brevis gone in the 13th over, CSK’s run rate dipped from 8.84 to 5.57. Hooda did score 21 but that was the only positive for CSK at the death. MS Dhoni played 10 balls but scored just 6 as others kept falling.
The credit must go to Harshal Patel. His art of bowling slower deliveries had no answer from MS Dhoni & Co. He scalped 4 wickets for 28 runs and bowled 14 dot balls, conceding just a four and two sixes.
Imperfect chase
By no means, Sunrisers Hyderabad had paced the chase perfectly. In a 155-run chase, SRH posted 69/3 after 10 overs with 86 runs still needed off the last 60 deliveries. Ishan Kishan, who hit a slump after the century on SRH debut, was the architect.
Kishan scored 44 off 34 balls. It was a knock of patience. He never rushed things, playing out of his character. With five boundaries and a six, he kept coming back at CSK bowlers despite the scoring rate dipping to below 7.
However, Kamindu Mendis and Nitish Kumar Reddy added an unbeaten 49-run stand for the 6th wicket. Reddy remained unbeaten on 19 while Mendis steered the chase with an unbeaten 32 to win the match for SRH in 18.4 overs.
CSK vs SRH, IPL 2025: Dhoni’s kingdom falls as Sunrisers Hyderabad dent Chennai Super Kings’ playoff hopes Inside Sport India.
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