India, May 23 -- Chennai Super Kings suffered from several injuries and players struggling for form as they failed to qualify for the IPL 2026 playoffs, a disappointing end to the season for arguably the most successful team in the competition's history.

Part of CSK's struggle was a lack of runs, particularly impactful runs, from their captain Ruturaj Gaikwad, who opened the batting and struck 337 runs, but at a lowly strike-rate of 123.44. For frontline batters in the tournament, this was the lowest, and highlighted CSK's issues with matching the firepower across the league.

Although it was a hard-fought season with 12 points from six wins, there have been some calls that have earned them criticism - Gaikwad has been the target for muc...