IPL 2025: Auction misfire behind CSK's misery admits Stephen Fleming: 'Other teams have got better'

IPL 2025: Auction misfire behind CSK's misery (IPL Photo)

The misfortune of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) continue in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). On Friday, the five-time champions endured yet another loss, which kept them at the bottom of the points table with just four points from nine matches. This was CSK's seventh loss of the season and during the post-match press conference franchise coach Stephen Fleming was asked to reflect back at the disastrous campaign.

Fleming stated most of CSK's failure has got to do with the auction in the first place, adding other teams nailed it, while CSK "just haven't been able to get it right".

“It is hard to say we got it (player auction) completely right with the performances that we have had,” he said. “So we have been looking over that in detail just around our style of play. Also looking at how the game is evolving it is not easy. And that is why we are proud of our record today. We have been able to be consistent for so long and it doesn't take much for it to go another way. Other teams have got better and that is the point of the auction. But we just haven't been able to get it right,” he added.

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The head coach added more on the subject, stating "reflection" needs to be done and calling the two-day event at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia "mentally and sometimes physically" exhausting.

“So you take responsibility from the top down and then you just ask a little more of the players. But yeah, that has to be an area where we need to reflect and say it wasn't as good as what it could have been or it hasn't worked out how we wanted.”

“It is also not perfect science. The auction is a very fluid beast. It's like buying [for] 25 hours and see it come away at the end of it mentally and sometimes physically exhausted. And to be fair, I still think we have got a good squad. We are not far away.”

“A couple of key injuries, just a bit of a lack of form. And we have just struggled really to nail a game plan. We've chopped and changed too much. I think it was trying to look for something that perhaps we felt wasn't there. So yeah, there is a lot of responsibility and soul-searching and it certainly starts with me at the top, 100%,” he added.