Enduring a poor run in the IPL 2025, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will have the best opportunity to stage a much-needed comeback at home when they take on an equally desperate Sunrisers Hyderabad in a battle of survival in a league match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday.

Placed at the rock bottom of the IPL points tally with identical fortunes, both SRH and CSK have four points from eight games each, and need to win all their remaining matches of the tournament to have any chances of reaching the playoffs.

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The problem for five-time champions CSK this season has been their inconsistent run at the Chepauk, once their fortress being breached by numerous teams this season. While they started strongly with a win against Mumbai Indians in their season opener, but their campaign faltered after suffered three successive losses thereafter.

The seamer-friendly conditions at home this season has added to their frustration as CSK has traditionally relied on their spinners. Even their head coach Stephen Fleming has voiced concern over the alien nature of the surface at the Chepauk.

Having said that, CSK’s form on the road also hasn’t been any better either, as they managed only a solitary win in four attempts. The lack of power-hitters down the order, and over-dependence on veteran Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who took over the reins of the side for the rest of the season after captain Ruturaj Gaikwad was ruled out with an injury, has only made it worse for the storied outfit.

Even the return of MSD at the helm hasn’t helped the side’s cause, and the 43-year-old wicketkeeper-batter’s troublesome knee has limited his mobility, and resulted in his late arrival to the crease, especially at No.9 during crucial chases. His death-overs batting, field placements, and ability to recalibrate the bowling attack could be key in CSK’s revival.

The franchise will pin their hopes on 17-year-old Ayush Mhatre, who made a promising debut against MI with the bat, and also expect some freshness in power-hitting from their latest replacement in South Africa’s Dewald Brevis.

On the other hand, SRH are a bruised lot, and arrive in Chennai with a hope to revive their falling campaign. After a sound start at home, the Hyderabad franchise failed to continue the momentum with their ultra-explosive batting approach falling flat this season.

The explosive opening pair of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma, so vital last season, have failed to hit the same heights this year. While Sharma’s brilliance secured a win against Punjab Kings, the Australian southpaw is yet to get into his rhythm.

Despite having a strong middle order with the likes of Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Abhinav Manohar, the franchise has relied mostly on the starts from the opening duo, and the ploy hasn’t worked for the side, something head coach Daniel Vettori also conceded after the seven-wicket loss to Mumbai Indians on Wednesday.

“When Head and Abhishek don’t succeed, then it’s the responsibility of the other batsmen. Potentially that’s what we haven’t had this season around,” Vettori said.

Squads

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Atharva Taide, Abhinav Manohar, Aniket Verma, Sachin Baby, Smaran Ravichandran, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Travis Head, Harshal Patel, Kamindu Mendis, Wiaan Mulder, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Shami, Rahul Chahar, Simarjeet Singh, Zeeshan Ansari, Jaydev Unadkat, Eshan Malinga.

Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (c&wk), Dewald Brevis, Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, Shaik Rasheed, Vansh Bedi, Andre Siddharth, Ayush Mhatre, Rachin Ravindra, Ravichandran Ashwin, VIjay Shankar, Sam Curran, Anshul Kamboj, Deepak Hooda, Jamie Overton, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Khaleel Ahmed, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Nathan Ellis, Shreyas Gopal, Matheesha Pathirana.