There's something off about Chennai Super Kings (CSK) this Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. Heading into their face-off against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, the team had registered only one win out of five games and sat at ninth place in the standings.
Their clash with KKR was a critical one—but once again it seems like CSK's fortress at Chepauk may be breached. The team crumbled under pressure and managed just 103 runs for 9 wickets in 20 overs, leaving fans frustrated and disappointed. The backlash online didn't stop with the team—it extended to former CSK player Ambati Rayudu as well.
Though retired, Ambati Rayudu remains a constant voice for the CSK camp, despite serving as a commentator. Known for passionately backing MS Dhoni, Rayudu's loyalty often shows during broadcasts. But with Dhoni and CSK both underperforming this season, fans didn’t hold back from mocking Rayudu for his unwavering support.
Netizens took to X (formerly Twitter) to troll the former cricketer alongside CSK’s dismal performance.?One wrote, "Please someone check on Rayudu… He may be having an anxiety attack after watching Thala and CSK’s batting."
Another said, "Rayudu ke aansu ruk nahi rahe [Rayudu's tears won't stop].”
A third added, "Ye Rayudu har baat mein Thala aur CSK ka naam leta hai [Rayudu brings up Thala and CSK in every sentence]."
And one fan commented, "CSK fans worshiping Dhoni is like chewing a bubble gum long after it’s lost all flavor and colour."
CSK's top order again faltered under pressure. Rachin Ravindra (4 off 9), Devon Conway (12 off 11), Rahul Tripathi (16 off 22), Noor Ahmad (1 off 8), and even the crowd favorite MS Dhoni (1 off 4) failed to make an impression. Amid the collapse, Vijay Shankar's 29 off 21 briefly revived hopes, and Shivam Dube added a gritty 31 off 29 to push CSK to a total of 103/9 in 20 overs.
KKR's bowlers, however, were clinical throughout. Sunil Narine led the assault with 3 wickets, while Varun Chakaravarthy and Harshit Rana grabbed two each. Moeen Ali and Vaibhav Arora also chipped in with one apiece, completing a dominant all-round effort from Kolkata’s bowling unit.
Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Quinton de Kock(w), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Moeen Ali, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakaravarthy?
Impact Subs: Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Luvnith Sisodia, Anukul Roy
Chennai Super Kings (Playing XI): Rachin Ravindra, Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, Vijay Shankar, Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni(w/c), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Khaleel Ahmed
Impact Subs: Matheesha Pathirana, Jamie Overton, Deepak Hooda, Shaik Rasheed, Kamlesh Nagarkoti?
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