Picture Credit: BCCI/IPL
Harbhajan Singh, the former Indian cricketer, called out Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for benching Ravichandran Ashwin during their recent Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 defeat by four wickets with two balls to spare against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The 44-year-old stated that the decision to keep Ravichandran Ashwin out of the playing lineup wasn’t good, especially when they had paid him nearly INR 10 Crore for his services.
Notably, in the IPL 2025 mega auction, CSK management spent exactly INR 9.75 Crore to sign Ravichandran Ashwin after Rajasthan Royals (RR) had released him. He has played seven out of 10 matches in the ongoing season for CSK, taking just five wickets at an average of 44.60 and an economy of 9.29, which aren’t quite the stats the right-arm off spinner would have hoped for after returning to the franchise in more than a decade.
I don’t know why he is not playing, but it seems he might have fought with someone: Harbhajan on Ashwin
While speaking on the JioHotstar show after the IPL 2025 clash between CSK and PBKS, which the former ended up on the losing side, Harbhajan Singh wasn’t happy about the non-selection of Ravichandran Ashwin. He was quoted as saying, “Chennai didn’t select the team based on conditions. Had Noor Ahmad, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja played together against Punjab Kings, Chennai Super Kings could have won the match. You didn’t pay Rs 10 crore for Ashwin to bench him. I don’t know why he is not playing, but it seems he might have fought with someone.”
“He is not the only one who hasn’t performed. Others are still playing despite their ordinary performances, but Ashwin is out of the team. He should have played against Punjab, as the ball was spinning,” Harbhajan Singh added. CSK are already eliminated from the playoffs race in the ongoing IPL 2025 season after losing the first eight out of 10 matches in the season.
Moreover, Chennai Super Kings are set to play against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their next match in the tournament at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday, May 3.
