Credit: BCCI/IPL
During the latest ongoing Chennai Super Kings (CSK) vs Gujarat Titans (GT) Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match on 25th May at the Narendra Modi stadium Ahmedabad, Suresh Raina caught the attention of many fans with a statement while commentating alongside Aakash Chopra. During the second innings of the CSK vs GT encounter, a discussion broke out between Raina and Chopra about the future of the CSK side, where both of them were discussing about the possible changes to the team and management.
When the camera panned over to the CSK CEO Kasi Vishwanathan, who was sitting in the stands, Aakash Chopra asked Raina about what was going on there. Raina replied by saying, “The planning for next year is what’s going on. Kasi sir has been handling everything for many years and even MS Dhoni has been at it for quite some time. If the team needs to be propelled further, new ideas and new players need to come in. CSK is a big brand and it won’t go to dust so easily.” To this, Aakash Chopra replied cheekily by saying, “You just heard it for the first time on Star Sports, from the next year’s batting coach of CSK…” hinting Suresh Raina’s appointment as the new CSK batting coach.
Raina defends CSK’s poor season amid criticism
Raina also caught the attention of viewers when he spoke about CSK’s inconsistent form this season and whether the team is done for. He addressed this by saying, “If the eagle doesn’t fly for four days, the sky does not belong to the pigeons.” His poetic inference was to CSK’s dwindling form this season and the inability to make the playoffs.
In the current game, CSK have had an explosive start to the first innings, posting 230 on the scoreboard with some late fireworks from Dewald Brevis. Their bowling unit has also been lethal as they have restricted GT’s dangerous batting attack to 106/6 in 13 overs as of writing. Looking at the current scenario, CSK might be able to scrape away with a consolation win in their last game of the 2025 IPL season.
