Chennai Super Kings (CSK) were underwhelming in the last Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Neither the batters nor the bowlers stood up. But of the two, the batting was the bigger issue. CSK invested heavily in experience and players who had proven track records.
But it didn’t work. They also suffered a major blow when their captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad, was ruled out due to an injury. His replacement was actually great, but the overall problem remained. Before the IPL 2026 auction, CSK might take a call on some of these batters.
Top batters CSK should retain for IPL 2026
Apart from being the CSK captain, Gaikwad is also one of their best batters. Since 2020, when he made his IPL debut, no CSK batter has scored more runs, 2502, for the franchise than Gaikwad. The next best after him is Shivam Dube, 1460. Nothing needs to be said about MS Dhoni. His power hitting remains exceptional, and he’s still one of the best finishers in the league.
| Batter | Type | Price (INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Ruturaj Gaikwad | Opener/top-order batter | 18.00 crore |
| MS Dhoni | Middle-order keeper batter | 4.00 crore |
| Dewald Brevis | Middle-order batter | 2.20 crore |
| Ayush Mhatre | Opener | 30.00 lakh |
| Urvil Patel | Opener/top-order batter | 30.00 lakh |
Dewald Brevis replaced injured Gurjapneet Singh and ended up as their best batter of IPL 2025. The 22-year-old averaged 37.50 and struck at 180. Ayush Mhatre replaced Gaikwad and, at just 18, scored 240 runs at 34.28 and had a strike rate of 188.97. Urvil Patel also came as an injury replacement for Vansh Bedi and ended with a 212.50 with just 3 matches to his name.
CSK squad (batters) before IPL 2026 auction
Ruturaj Gaikwad, MS Dhoni (wk), Dewald Brevis, Ayush Mhatre, Devon Conway (wk), Rahul Tripathi, Shaik Rasheed, Vansh Bedi (wk), Andre Siddarth, Urvil Patel (wk)
