After enduring a heavy loss against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK) faced heat from fans for an underwhelming performance against the Rishabh Pant-led side on Friday, May 16 at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow.
Amid criticism from everywhere, former Indian all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin has backed his former franchise, saying the Ruturaj Gaikwad led-side has done significantly well despite having so many injuries in the squad.
"Despite so many injuries, Stephen Fleming and Ruturaj Gaikwad have set the ball rolling and have done a good job to stay in the hunt for playoffs," said Ashwin on his official YouTube Channel.
While continuing further, the former CSK star believes it is a huge task to make a strong comeback after facing three straight losses in the first three matches of the season. Ashwin applauded the brave effort from skipper Gaikwad and head coach Stephen Fleming for showing absolute resolve after a tough start, which shows their experience and trust in the squad.
“Especially after a harrowing start of three defeats in their first three games, to have turned the season around like this with two games to go, it shows Fleming’s experience and Gaikwad’s resolve and trust in the head coach," added the former CSK player.
Chennai Super Kings' position in the points table
Currently, the five-time IPL champions stand at the sixth place in the standings with 12 points in hand in 12 matches (six wins and six losses) at a net run rate of +0.027. The Yellow Army have two games remaining in their league stage campaign against SRH and GT respectively.
Next challenge for CSK
After enduring a tough loss vs LSG, CSK will look to secure a win in their upcoming clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday, 18 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The clash will be significant for the Yellow Army, as a win could make sure their presence in the race to playoffs