Chennai Super Kings‘ head coach, Stephen Fleming, reflected on his team’s difficult start to IPL 2025. On April 5, CSK suffered their third consecutive defeat, losing by 25 runs to Delhi Capitals at Chepauk. When asked whether CSK could find success with young, uncapped players, Fleming pointed out that experience has been the backbone of their success.

“KL Rahul was not that young, but he played a match-winning innings today. He was very good,” Fleming said.

“You know, I’m a fan of experience. Big players traditionally step up matches during the tournament, and when they do, younger players can play the cameos. We’ve supported experience over the years, and it’s done us pretty well.” Fleming added.

Fleming explained why he prefers experience. “It’s not that we don’t like young players, but we prefer consistency and the problem-solving ability that experienced players often display.”

He mentioned that MS Dhoni showed intent during CSK’s defeat to Delhi Capitals. He scored 30 runs off 26 balls at Chepauk.

“The intent was there. I believe the ball started to grip a bit more. We knew the conditions would be favorable in the first half, but gradually slow down. So, we were eager to bat first and then adapt to the changing pace of the ball. They executed that really well. Vijay Shankar had difficulty in timing the ball throughout his innings. The period from the 12th to the 16th over was challenging for everyone. It was hard to watch, and certainly difficult to be out there. The game began to slip out of reach, and despite the intent and different strategies, the challenge became too overwhelming,” he concluded.