IPL 2025: Ambati Rayudu questions CSK’s batting strength after RCB hammering at Chepauk-OxBig News Network

Former Chennai Super Kings batter Ambati Rayudu slammed the team’s current middle order after their embarrassing loss against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Playing at the Che[auk Stadium on Friday, March 28, CSK put up a poor account of themselves and lost vs RCB at home for the first time in 17 years.

Speaking on the broadcast after the game, Rayudu slammed the quality of batters in the CSK line-up and said that the team needed to shake things up if they wanted to remain in the running for the playoffs spots this season. Rayudu’s rant came after CSK scored just 146 runs in reply to RCB’s 196 on Friday.

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“I am not so convinced about the middle order that CSK possesses right now. To play good quality bowling, you need your best batsmen to bat at those numbers. Ruturaj has to open and also you need to get Ravindra Jadeja slightly up. And also, you cannot have MS Dhoni so low in the order. CSK have their task cut out, they are not playing well against spin also, and it does not look great,” Ambati Rayudu said after the match.

Chennai made some strange decisions during their chase on Friday. First, they sent Sam Curran ahead of Shivam Dube, the spin specialist who was making his return to the Indian team based on his ability to tackle spin.

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Curran struggled against the slower balls during his 13-ball stay, managing just 8 runs before being dismissed. The team’s inability to get going – thanks to deliveries soaked up by Gaikwad, Tripathi, Hooda, and Curran, totalling 29 runs in the first 9 overs – pushed CSK far behind the required run rate, which ultimately proved too much for them.

Amid the flurry of wickets between the 9th and 12th overs, it was surprising to see MS Dhoni, the team’s key player, staying in the dugout. Even Ravichandran Ashwin came out to bat ahead of him but, as expected, couldn’t rescue the team.

By the time Dhoni finally came in at No. 9, the game was already out of reach. Dhoni did manage to hit 16 runs off 6 balls in the final over against Krunal Pandya, finishing unbeaten on 30* from 16 balls. However, his late flourish had no real impact on the result of the match.