Chennai Super Kings’ shaky start to IPL 2026 has opened up a bigger question than just form. It has brought leadership under the scanner, with former India batter Subramaniam Badrinath suggesting the franchise should at least think about taking the captaincy away from Ruturaj Gaikwad to free up his batting.
The suggestion comes at a time when CSK are searching for momentum, Gaikwad’s returns at the top have fallen short, and MS Dhoni remains unavailable. With Sanju Samson already in the setup and carrying captaincy experience of his own, the debate has suddenly become more real than theoretical.
Gaikwad’s batting slump puts captaincy under spotlight
Badrinath, speaking on his YouTube channel, made it clear that he was not attacking Gaikwad’s tactical ability as captain. His point was sharper than that. He argued that the burden of the role is beginning to show in Gaikwad’s batting, and that CSK may need to separate the two issues before the season slips further.
“It is worth pondering if the CSK management will think about removing him as captain and handing the role to Sanju Samson. It’s not because he’s failing terribly as captain, but the captaincy burden is clearly showing in his batting. You can see it in his face that he’s under immense pressure. Just to offload that pressure, can CSK replace Ruturaj with Sanju as captain?” Badrinath said on his YouTube channel.
That view has come against the backdrop of a lean start with the bat from Gaikwad. In his first six innings of the season, he has not produced the sort of score expected from an opener who is supposed to set the tone in the powerplay and also carry the side in chases. For a batter of his quality, the returns have been underwhelming. For a captain, they have become a double burden.
Badrinath did not soften that part either. “Ruturaj needs to start firing. Six matches is a lot when you are opening and batting in the powerplay and keep failing. His captaincy was at least decent, though, in the SRH game. He hasn’t stepped up at all in run chases,” he said.
CSK’s recent problems have not just been about losing matches, but about how they have lost them. Their chase against Sunrisers Hyderabad, for instance, slipped away after they had worked themselves into a position from where a strong finish was needed. The slowdown in the middle overs and the inability to control the equation late exposed the same problem that has haunted them through phases of this campaign: the batting has not closed games out.
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That is where Dhoni’s absence becomes part of the same story. Badrinath argued that even now, CSK desperately need Dhoni in the death overs because of the pressure his presence alone puts on bowlers.
“Irrespective of the physical issues he has, CSK desperately need him in the death overs, with the way they are struggling. Even now, if MS Dhoni is batting in the 18th over, the bowler is under pressure. Lengths and yorkers will miss, and he will play the helicopter shot. His calmness and composure mean that even if 16 are needed off the last over with him batting, the bowler will be under immense pressure,” he said.
Sanju Samson’s name, meanwhile, is not coming up in a vacuum. He is an experienced IPL captain and a senior batter who arrived at CSK carrying both stature and proven leadership credentials. That makes him an obvious alternative in any discussion around a mid-season switch.
For now, CSK have shown no public indication of changing course. But six matches into the season, the pressure around Gaikwad is no longer only about runs. It is now about whether CSK can afford to let their captain fight two battles at once.