IPL 2021: “You have to be concerned when you lose three games in a row” - CSK coach Stephen Fleming

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) coach Stephen Fleming has admitted that the team’s run of three consecutive losses heading into the playoffs is definitely a cause of concern.

On Thursday, CSK were humbled by six wickets in match number 53 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 in Dubai. They had earlier gone down Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Delhi Capitals (DC) as well.

In the last two matches, CSK have struggled with the bat, posting less than 140. Fleming agreed that the batters have not been able to gauge the Dubai surface properly while batting first.

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Speaking at the post-match conference, the CSK coach said about the team’s batting woes.

“I am not sure about Suresh (Raina), where he is at with his injury status. But yes, you have to be concerned when you lose three games in a row. Batting first, when it comes to setting a total, it has been a little bit tricky going around the venues to try and find the target score. Not just for us but for most teams. So there is a challenge to try and find a bit of tempo when you are batting first and get a competitive score on the board. We have struggled to do that.”

Fleming, however, asserted that he is not too worried about CSK’s batting, stating that it was a matter of building up confidence again.

“I am not overly worried going forward because it can change very quickly. We have seen that. We layed very well early on to get into this position. You always get a hiccup along the way. We need a little bit of leeway but the confidence and method we are using, we need to chin that up in the next couple of days,” he added.

PBKS chased down CSK’s target of 135 with utmost ease on Thursday as KL Rahul scored a dazzling 98 not out off 42 balls.

“The balance is pretty good” - Fleming on CSK’s team combination

Asked if CSK could have played an extra bowler in place of Robin Uthappa, Fleming replied in the negative. He pointed out that with the team’s batting not clicking in recent games, they needed that extra cushion.

“Considering we are batting below par, not really (playing extra bowler). We think the balance is pretty good with the six bowlers that we have got. In the last few games, barring the one game where we got 190, we have been a little bit short with the bat. This tournament is difficult and you have different rhythms at different times. We have struggled to come to grips with Dubai's surface in the last couple of games,” the CSK coach said.

Praising PBKS, he added,

“We met a team today with excellent intent. So if there is any lesson, it is probably the intent to show to create opportunities. I am pretty philosophical about it. I know you are going to get beaten at times. But if you can ride the waves, you can get close to the end of the tournament, which we have.”

Despite the loss, CSK remains in second position in the points table with 18 points and a net run rate of +0.455.