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Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are the second-most successful team in IPL history. They have won the title four times - 2010, 2011, 2018 & 2021 - and have also made it to the finals a record nine times.
However, they had a poor season in 2022 as they finished ninth on the points table, winning only four out of 14 matches. The decision to hand over the captaincy to ace all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja did not work out well for the franchise.
We look at three games in the IPL where Chennai struggled in Dhoni's absence.
#1 CSK v RCB, Chinnaswamy Stadium, 2010
Chennai were up against their south Indian rivals in the 18th match of the tournament at the Chinnaswamy. Dhoni was ruled out of a few matches after a Shane Bond delivery in Kolkata hit him on his right elbow. The franchise appointed Suresh Raina as the stand-in skipper in his absence.
Raina won the toss and opted to field first. RCB scored a competitive 171/5 in the first innings, as Robin Uthappa led the way with a crucial 68* off just 38 balls. In response, Chennai's top order failed to get going.
They missed Dhoni's finishing skills as the required run rate shot up to over 12 runs per over in the final eight overs of the innings. They lost the game by a huge margin of 36 runs, denting their net run rate.
#2 CSK v SRH, Rajiv Gandhi Stadium, 2019
Chennai had to play the in-form Sunrisers Hyderabad at their home ground in the 41st match of the season. Dhoni had a niggle in his back, which led to him resting for a couple of matches with the World Cup starting on May 30. They won the toss and elected to bat first.
The opening partnership between Shane Watson and Faf du Plessis gave a solid start of 79 runs in 9.5 overs. However, they were dismissed in successive overs. This brought down CSK's scoring rate massively. They could only end up with 132 runs in the first innings as Jadeja failed to get going (10 runs off 20 balls).
They missed their in-form captain, who was an elite finisher that season. SRH chased down the target comfortably in 16.5 overs with six wickets to spare. Warner and Bairstow played high-impact knocks and ensured that their side got an NRR boost as well.
#3 CSK v MI, Chepauk, 2019
CSK won the toss and elected to bowl first against their arch-rivals Mumbai Indians at their home ground. They scored 155/4 in the first innings, with captain Rohit Sharma scoring a vital 67 off 48 balls on a wicket that was challenging for the batters.
In response, Chennai were struggling. They kept losing wickets at regular intervals and except Murali Vijay, none of them could stay on the crease for long. They were 60/5 in the first 10 overs. Dhoni's presence could have certainly given them a better chance to pull off a difficult run-chase due to his ability to pace the innings on these type of wickets. CSK lost the game by a significant margin of 46 runs.
