Spin-bowling all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin's homecoming did not turn out the way he expected it to be. After managing to take five wickets from six games, Ashwin was dropped from the CSK side on April 14 as they took on Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Skipper MS Dhoni replaced Devon Conway with Jamie Overton and Ashwin with newbie Shaik Rasheed. The move paid off and CSK ended their longest losing streak of five games. After the match, Dhoni revealed that asking Ashwin to bowl two overs in powerplay meant putting 'too much pressure' on him.
"We were putting too much pressure on Ash. He was bowling two overs in the first six. We made changes and this looks like a better attack. As a bowling unit we've done well. As a batting unit, we can do better. Roles and responsibilities - that's what we talk about," Dhoni said in the post-match presentation.
While England all-rounder Overton did not get to bat and conceded 24 runs in two overs he bowled, Rasheed got CSK off to a perfect start with the bat. On his IPL debut, Rasheed scored 27 runs from 19 balls, including six fours. Rasheed and Rachin Ravindra got CSK past the 50-run mark in the fifth over itself which was something they missed in the season so far.
Dhoni lauded Rasheed for his 'authentic shots' to find the vacant spaces on the field to exploit fielding restrictions.
"I think he batted really well today. He has been with us for quite a few years. This year he has been batting really well in the nets against both pacers and spinners. It's just the start. He has the capability to dominate with authentic shots," the 43-year-old said.
Ashwin in IPL 2025 so far
Ashwin has taken five wickets from six games at an underwhelming average of 39.60. He has conceded runs at 9.90 runs per over. With the bat, he has got two chances where he batted ahead of Dhoni. He scored 11 runs against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the unsuccessful run chase. Then, he scored a single against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and contributed to the batting collapse.
He was roped in for Rs 9.75 crore by CSK in the mega auction.