India, March 30 -- A season has changed, but Chennai Super Kings' powerplay batting story has not. In their first innings of IPL 2026, against Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati on Monday, CSK stumbled to 41 for 4 in the first six overs, a start that immediately reopened the question that dogged them through IPL 2025: why does a side with this much batting reputation keep giving away the easiest scoring phase of a T20 innings?

The number looks even worse when placed against the broader IPL context. The tournament opened with high scores in the powerplay in the first two matches, a reminder of where powerplay batting now sits in the league's economy. Against that backdrop, 41/4 is not merely a slow start; it is a collapse wrapped inside a slow ...