Stephen Fleming expressed disappointment with his team’s fielding performance after Chennai Super Kings suffered their fourth consecutive defeat in IPL 2025, losing to Punjab Kings by 18 runs on Tuesday night. While Stephen Fleming acknowledged some positives in their batting display, he was critical of their failure to execute under pressure in the field and with the ball.
CSK Coach Stephen Fleming Emphasizes Batting Positives But Slams Fielding Errors
Chennai Super Kings, chasing a massive 220-run target, started well with openers Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway building a promising partnership of 61 runs in just 6.3 overs—their best start in five games. However, the innings lost momentum after Ruturaj Gaikwad’s early dismissal, and despite a late blitz from MS Dhoni, who smashed three sixes in a 12-ball 27, CSK finished 18 runs short.
“The positives are we batted a bit better,” said Stephen Fleming. “We’ve had some substance from the top order, which was a bit lacking, so we were able to then construct the chase… But we’ve been in the game for a lot longer, which is a positive aspect.”
However, it was CSK’s fielding that cost them dearly. Multiple dropped catches allowed PBKS batters to dominate. Priyansh Arya, who scored a fiery 100 off 39 balls, was dropped twice—first by Khaleel Ahmed in the first over and then by Mukesh Choudhary when he was on 73. Another costly error came when Ravindra dropped Shashank Singh on 38, who later scored an unbeaten 52, pushing PBKS to a daunting 219/6.
“The game was really lost in the field… we just lacked accuracy under pressure,” Stephen Fleming added. “We were put under pressure by a fine innings [from Arya] but we’ve got to be better than that in terms of shutting it down.”
IPL 2025 Playoffs at Risk for CSK
CSK’s struggles extend beyond just one game. Their top order has been inconsistent, and their catching woes have persisted throughout the season. While Stephen Fleming remains hopeful, he acknowledged that the margin for error is rapidly shrinking.
“If you’re going to win the IPL you need your top three-four to get a majority of the runs,” he said. “We just lost a little bit of momentum through the middle.”
Now teetering near the bottom of the points table, Chennai will need a swift turnaround in both form and focus if they hope to keep their playoff dreams alive against KKR which in on 11th April at Chepauk which has turned into an almost win game for CSK.
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