MS Dhoni, the captain of the Chennai Super Kings, explained why they dropped experienced off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin from the lineup against the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2025. Ashwin has faced a lot of criticism lately for not performing well in this season. This match marked Ashwin’s return after CSK paid a hefty sum to bring him back home.
After losing five games in a row, CSK needed to shake things up, so they decided to replace Ashwin with Jamie Overton, aiming to boost their batting while still keeping a backup bowler. Dhoni talked about this change in the post-match comments, saying they were putting too much pressure on Ashwin. He felt that the new approach made for a stronger bowling attack, and emphasized the need to improve their batting.
In the first six games of the season, Ashwin took five wickets but had a high average of 39.6 and an economy rate of 9.90, which clearly showed his struggles, especially in the powerplay.
Ashwin wasn’t the only one missing from the lineup; New Zealand opener Devon Conway was also left out after being retired in a past game. He was replaced by 20-year-old Shaik Rasheed.
When Lucknow’s skipper Rishabh Pant scored a solid 63, leading his team to 166/7, Rasheed and Rachin Ravindra started CSK’s chase strongly with a 52-run opening partnership. Later, when CSK was struggling at 111/5, Dhoni teamed up with Shivam Dube to keep hopes alive.
Dhoni played smartly and remained not out with 26 runs off 11 balls, helping Chennai secure the win. Dube finished the match with 43 runs, and CSK celebrated their much-needed five-wicket victory, ending their losing streak.
