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IPL 2026

Chennai Super Kings | CSK 2026 Squad, Players, Stats, and Season History

Jan. 27, 2026

Chennai Super Kings are not just another IPL team. For most of the league’s history, CSK have been the team that stays in the race even when things look messy. They have won the IPL five times and have reached the playoffs in most seasons they played. IPL 2026 feels like a reset point for CSK. The 2025 season ended badly, with CSK finishing at the bottom for the first time. But this is also the kind of situation CSK have bounced back from before. The squad for 2026 has familiar leaders, some smart retentions, and a few big auction calls that show they want to rebuild quickly. Chennai Super Kings are owned by Chennai Super Kings Cricket Limited, led by N. Srinivasan. The franchise has historically relied on stable ownership, long term leadership, and continuity in decision making. A philosophy that also shapes their approach heading into IPL 2026. Before we get into the 2026 squad, it helps to know the CSK history in simple steps. Because with CSK, the past always explains the present.

CSK IPL 2026 at a Glance

  • Captain: Ruturaj Gaikwad
  • Coach: Stephen Fleming
  • Key Additions: Sanju Samson, Rahul Chahar
  • Biggest Exit: Ravindra Jadeja
  • Auction Intent: Clear shift toward uncapped and young Indian players
  • Squad Strength: Batting depth, spin variety
  • Squad Concern: Ageing core, death bowling consistency
Below is the full CSK squad for IPL 2026, followed by role wise IPL T20 stats drawn from official sources.

Chennai Super Kings IPL 2026 Complete Squad

This is the complete CSK players list for IPL 2026. Think of this as the base reference. After this, the squad is broken down by roles with key stats.

Batters & Wicketkeeper Batters (CSK 2026)

Player Batting Style Age
Ruturaj Gaikwad (C) Right hand bat 28
Dewald Brevis Right hand bat 22
MS Dhoni Right hand bat 44
Kartik Sharma Right hand bat 19
Sarfaraz Khan Right hand bat 28
Urvil Patel Right hand bat 27
Sanju Samson Right hand bat 31
Matthew Short Right hand bat 30

All rounders (CSK 2026)

Player Batting Style Bowling Style Age
Aman Khan Right hand bat Medium 28
Shivam Dube Left hand bat Medium 32
Zakary Foulkes Right hand bat Medium 23
Ramakrishna Ghosh Right hand bat Medium fast 28
Shreyas Gopal Right hand bat Legbreak 32
Ayush Mhatre Right hand bat Offbreak 18
Jamie Overton Right hand bat Fast 31
Prashant Veer Left hand bat Slow left arm orthodox 19

Bowlers (CSK 2026)

Player Bowling Style Age
Khaleel Ahmed Left arm fast medium 27
Rahul Chahar Legbreak googly 26
Nathan Ellis Fast medium 31
Gurjapneet Singh Left arm medium fast 27
Matt Henry Fast medium 33
Akeal Hosein Slow left arm orthodox 32
Anshul Kamboj Medium 24
Mukesh Choudhary Left arm medium 29
Noor Ahmad Left arm wrist spin 20

IPL 2026 Trade between CSK and Rajasthan Royals

  • CSK to Rajasthan Royals: Ravindra Jadeja (₹14 cr), Sam Curran (₹2.4 cr)
  • Rajasthan Royals to CSK: Sanju Samson (₹18 cr)
Sanju Samson joined CSK after requesting a release from Rajasthan Royals. The trade was part of CSK’s squad reshaping ahead of IPL 2026, while Jadeja returned to Rajasthan Royals.

CSK IPL 2026 team analysis

Batters & Wicketkeepers

CSK’s batting group includes top order anchors, middle order hitters, and wicketkeepers who contribute primarily with the bat. The numbers below focus on output, consistency, and scoring speed. IPL stats are shown where available, otherwise overall T20 numbers are used.
Player Stats type Matches Runs Average Strike rate 50s 100s
Ruturaj Gaikwad IPL 71 2502 40.35 137.47 20 2
MS Dhoni IPL 278 5439 38.30 137.45 24 0
Kartik Sharma T20 12 334 30.36 162.92 2 0
Sarfaraz Khan IPL 50 585 22.50 130.58 1 0
Urvil Patel IPL 3 68 22.66 212.50 0 0
Sanju Samson IPL 177 4704 30.94 139.04 26 3
Matthew Short IPL 6 117 19.50 127.17 0 0
  • Ruturaj Gaikwad remains CSK’s most consistent run-scorer since 2020, anchoring the top order across multiple cycles. Since 2021, he has scored over 2,500 IPL runs for CSK, including an Orange Cap season (2021). This makes him one of the most reliable franchise batters in the league.
  • Sanju Samson directly addresses CSK’s biggest 2025 weakness: middle-order explosiveness. CSK’s middle overs last season were among the slowest in the league, with several batters operating below a strike rate of 100. Samson’s natural aggression and power-hitting give CSK a clear acceleration option.
  • CSK have stacked their wicketkeeping options smartly for IPL 2026. Sanju Samson is expected to be the primary wicketkeeper, while MS Dhoni is likely to be used as a finisher or Impact Player to preserve workload.
  • MS Dhoni’s batting role is now clearly specialized rather than expansive. He operates as a high-impact finisher, typically batting in the final two to three overs, where his strike rate has crossed 250 in recent seasons. His value lies in efficiency, not volume.
(All stats used in this article are sourced via live Cricket APIs.)

All rounders

All rounders add balance to the squad by contributing in more than one discipline. Some provide reliable middle order runs, while others support the bowling attack in specific phases of the game. Batting contribution:
Player Stats type Matches Runs Average Strike rate
Aman Khan IPL 12 115 12.77 110.57
Shivam Dube IPL 79 1859 30.47 143.66
Zak Foulkes T20 17 22 5.50 91.66
Ramakrishna Ghosh T20 9 45 9.00 150.00
Shreyas Gopal IPL 52 180 12.85 106.50
Ayush Mhatre IPL 7 240 34.28 188.97
Jamie Overton IPL 3 15 214.28
Prashant Veer T20 9 112 28.00 167.16
Bowling contribution:
Player Stats type Matches Wickets Average Economy
Shivam Dube IPL 79 5 42.60 10.30
Zak Foulkes T20 17 16 27.81 8.21
Ramakrishna Ghosh T20 9 2 126.00 10.95
Shreyas Gopal IPL 52 52 25.94 8.16
Jamie Overton IPL 3 0 13.83
Prashant Veer T20 9 12 16.66 6.45
  • Shivam Dube remains a core batting asset, but his role has become highly specialized. While a natural all-rounder, he has bowled only five overs across the last four IPL seasons for CSK, largely due to tactical usage and the Impact Player rule.
  • The Impact Player rule has reduced CSK’s traditional all-rounder advantage. Bowling contributions from batting all-rounders have dropped, increasing dependence on specialist bowlers.
  • Investments in Ayush Mhatre and Prashant Veer signal long-term thinking. CSK are moving away from an ageing-core model toward nurturing high-upside Indian talent.
  • Prashant Veer is viewed as a long-term Jadeja replacement. His value lies in the combination of left-handed power and left-arm spin, while Mhatre’s early impact supports CSK’s youth-led continuity.
(All stats used in this article are sourced via live Cricket APIs.)

Bowlers

CSK’s bowling attack covers the new ball, middle overs, and death overs with a mix of pace and spin options.
Player Stats type Matches Wickets Average Economy
Khaleel Ahmed IPL 71 89 26.15 8.97
Rahul Chahar IPL 79 75 28.66 7.72
Nathan Ellis IPL 17 19 28.73 8.66
Gurjapneet Singh T20 15 21 24.38 9.25
Matt Henry IPL 6 2 90.50 10.64
Akeal Hosein IPL 1 1 40.00 10.00
Anshul Kamboj IPL 11 10 28.60 9.07
Mukesh Choudhary IPL 16 17 30.70 9.94
Noor Ahmad IPL 37 48 22.22 8.08
  • Rahul Chahar is a plug-and-play solution for the middle overs (7-16). His IPL experience and control against set batters immediately improve CSK’s ability to slow scoring phases where they struggled badly in 2025.
  • Noor Ahmad remains CSK’s most reliable wicket-taking option through the middle overs. However, the attack still lacks depth when it comes to closing out innings at the death.
  • Death bowling is CSK’s biggest unresolved risk heading into IPL 2026. Nathan Ellis is currently the only proven death-overs specialist, creating heavy dependence on his fitness and form.
  • The absence of a Pathirana-like enforcer leaves CSK vulnerable in high-scoring games. In modern T20 conditions, where 200+ totals are common, death-over control often decides matches.
(All stats used in this article are sourced via live Cricket APIs.)

IPL 2026 Stats and Data for Your Website or App

All the IPL 2026 data shown on this blog can be used directly on your own platform whether it’s a website, app, or internal tool using Cricket API. So instead of just reading these stats, you can actually build with them.

How do you use this data?

You integrate the APIs once, and then use the data however your product needs.

If you are a developer

You can use our APIs to build:
  • Fantasy apps
  • Live score widgets
  • Dashboards and simulators
We already provide ball by ball data, player stats, team stats, points tables, and match data. You focus on features and UI. We handle the data layer.

If you are doing marketing around IPL 2026

You can use live match data to run prediction and gamification campaigns. For example (like our past clients): “If Virat Kohli hits a six, you get 20% off.” “If India wins the next match, cashback on your order.” This kind of real time gamification has been used by brands like Zomato, Zepto, and FiMoney to drive millions of interactions during live matches.

If you are a media or stats website

You can display all IPL data in your own format:
  • Points tables
  • Player and team stats
  • Head to head comparisons
  • Match previews and reports
Instead of maintaining everything manually, your pages stay updated automatically using live data. Same data as this blog. Just delivered through APIs so you can turn it into products, campaigns, and traffic. 👉🏻You can explore the Indian Premier League 2026 data and API here

Frequently Asked Questions: CSK IPL 2026

Is Chennai Super Kings playing IPL 2026? Yes. Chennai Super Kings will play IPL 2026 after finishing 10th in the 2025 season. The team has rebuilt its squad and retained core leadership ahead of the new season. Who is the captain of CSK in IPL 2026? Ruturaj Gaikwad is the captain of Chennai Super Kings for IPL 2026. MS Dhoni continues in a mentor-style role, supporting on-field strategy and decision-making. Who are the key players in the CSK 2026 squad? The core of the CSK 2026 squad includes Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, MS Dhoni, Shivam Dube, Rahul Chahar, and Noor Ahmad. These players cover batting, spin, leadership, and finishing roles. Why did CSK trade Ravindra Jadeja before IPL 2026? The trade was part of a long-term rebuild. CSK freed up budget space and shifted focus toward younger players while reshaping their all-rounder balance. What went wrong for CSK in IPL 2025? CSK struggled with slow middle-overs scoring, inconsistent death bowling, and an ageing core. These issues led to their first last-place finish in franchise history. Is MS Dhoni playing IPL 2026? Yes. MS Dhoni is part of the CSK squad for IPL 2026, but his role is limited. He is expected to play as a finisher, wicketkeeper, and on-field mentor rather than a full-innings batter. Are CSK contenders in IPL 2026? CSK are playoff contenders but not title favourites. Their success depends on middle-order impact, consistent starts, and fixing death-overs bowling early in the season. What is CSK’s biggest risk in IPL 2026? Death bowling remains the biggest risk. Without a Pathirana-style enforcer, CSK rely heavily on Nathan Ellis and support bowlers to close out matches.
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