MS Dhoni accepts mistake of ‘putting too much pressure on Ashwin’ after dropping him from CSK XI for LSG match

MS Dhoni admitted the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) management's mistake and said they put too much pressure on all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin in IPL 2025. As a result, Ashwin could not deliver the goods and was subsequently dropped from the playing XI. After losing five matches in a row in the current season, CSK took the tough call of dropping Ashwin and Devon Conway from their away match against Lucknow Super Giants at the Eka Stadium on Monday (April 14).

CSK mainly played with three overseas cricketers while batting first and using Matheesha Pathirana as the Impact Sub but against LSG, they picked Pathirana, Jamie Overton and Noor Ahmed in their XI. Rachin Ravindra was the only overseas batter. The decision to bring on England's Overton in place of Ashwin was to strengthen the pace attack and also provide depth to the lower order. Ashwin, despite all his credentials as a Test batter, was not quite able to hit the big shots this year.

With the ball, Ashwin leaked 9.90 runs per over in the six matches that he played, picking up only five wickets. Dhoni agreed that they expected too much of Ashwin by wanting him to come good in the powerplay on placid batting and picking wickets in the middle overs.

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After his below-par performances, Ashwin was at the receiving end of criticism from fans and former cricketers. It was a homecoming for the 38-year-old after CSK shelled out a whopping sum of ₹9.75 crore to bring him back to Chepauk.

‘We put too much pressure on Ashwin’: Dhoni

Dhoni weighed in on the tactical changes that saw Ashwin's removal from the playing XI. "We were putting too much pressure on Ash. He was bowling two overs in the first six. We made changes, and this looks like a better attack. As a bowling unit, we've done well. As a batting unit, we can do better. Roles and responsibilities - that's what we talk about," Dhoni said in the post-match presentation.

Ashwin's struggle in the powerplay was evident in his staggering 90 runs in six overs for just a single wicket.

Ashwin wasn't the only player who was dropped for the fixture in Lucknow. New Zealand opener Devon Conway, who was retired out for Ravindra Jadeja in their encounter against Punjab Kings, was replaced by 20-year-old Shaik Rasheed.

After Lucknow skipper Rishabh Pant's fiery 63(49) lifted the Super Giants to 166/7, Rasheed and Rachin Ravindra began Chennai's pursuit with a belligerent approach. The duo raised a 52-run opening stand to set the tone of the chase.

When CSK were tottering at 111/5 in the 15th over, Dhoni joined hands with Shivam Dube to keep the fading hopes of victory alive. While Dube played against his aggressive nature, Dhoni turned back the clock and formulated a flawless blueprint for Chennai's victory.

He stayed unbeaten on 26 (11) and acted as the pillar behind Chennai's success. The winning runs came from Dube's (43*) bat as CSK rejoiced in a five-wicket triumph and wiped out the five-match losing streak.