CSK IPL history, stats, key moments: All you need to know about 2026 rebuild

Chennai Super Kings, one of the most successful franchises in IPL history, begin IPL 2026 on the back of a difficult 2025 season in which they finished last winning only four of their fourteen matches. The five-time champions have responded with a significant squad overhaul, including the trade of long-serving all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja to Rajasthan Royals in exchange for wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson.

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Ruturaj Gaikwad continues as captain for the 2026 season. MS Dhoni, 44, has been retained as a player for Rs 4 crore. Stephen Fleming remains head coach, a position he has held since the franchise's founding in 2008.


Founded in 2008, CSK Have Reached Ten IPL Finals

CSK were among the eight original IPL franchises, purchased for Rs 360 crore by India Cements, whose chairman N Srinivasan is a former BCCI president. The franchise appointed MS Dhoni as captain and Stephen Fleming as head coach from the outset, an arrangement that has remained largely intact across eighteen seasons.

In their debut season in 2008, CSK reached the final but lost to Rajasthan Royals. They have since appeared in ten finals and qualified for the playoffs twelve times in the sixteen seasons they have been eligible to compete, a record unmatched by any other franchise.

CSK's Five IPL Titles

• 2010: Beat Mumbai Indians by 22 runs
• 2011: Beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 58 runs
• 2018: Beat Sunrisers Hyderabad; Shane Watson scored an unbeaten 117 off 57 balls
• 2021: Beat Kolkata Knight Riders; Ruturaj Gaikwad scored 635 runs in the season
• 2023: Beat Gujarat Titans in the final; Ravindra Jadeja scored 10 runs off the last two deliveries to win the match

CSK are level with Mumbai Indians on five IPL titles, the most by any franchise in the tournament's history.

Two-Year Suspension in 2016-17, Returned to Win Title in 2018

CSK did not participate in the IPL in 2016 and 2017 after the franchise was suspended following a spot-fixing scandal. Gurunath Meiyappan, son-in-law of N Srinivasan, was arrested on charges of cheating and fraud. During the suspension, players including Dhoni and Suresh Raina played for Rising Pune Supergiants.

On their return in 2018, CSK won the title, with Watson's unbeaten century in the final against Sunrisers Hyderabad the defining performance of the campaign.

Captaincy Change in 2022, Title Win in 2023

In 2022, Dhoni handed the captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja ahead of the season. Jadeja returned the captaincy to Dhoni mid-tournament. CSK finished ninth that year, their worst season to that point, and failed to reach the playoffs.

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In 2023, CSK recovered to win their fifth title. Devon Conway scored 672 runs across the tournament, the highest by any batter that season. In the final against Gujarat Titans, CSK needed 10 runs off the last two balls, Jadeja hit a six and a four to win the match. Following the title, Dhoni handed the captaincy to Gaikwad.

2024 and 2025: Back-to-Back Playoff Exits, Then a Last-Place Finish

As defending champions in 2024, CSK finished fifth in the standings with seven wins and seven losses, missing the playoffs on net run rate. It was only the third time in franchise history they had failed to reach the knockout stage.

In 2025, Gaikwad suffered a hairline fracture of the elbow during a match against Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati and was ruled out after playing through the injury for two further games. Dhoni took over the captaincy for the remainder of the season. CSK won four of their fourteen matches and finished tenth, their lowest-ever finish in the IPL.

IPL 2026 Squad: Samson In, Jadeja Out; Heavy Investment in Uncapped Players

Ahead of IPL 2026, CSK traded Jadeja and Sam Curran to Rajasthan Royals and received Sanju Samson in return. The franchise also released Matheesha Pathirana, Devon Conway, and Rachin Ravindra.

At the auction, CSK signed uncapped domestic players Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma for Rs 14.20 crore each. Ayush Mhatre, who scored at a strike rate of 189 across seven games in IPL 2025 and captained India at the Under-19 World Cup in 2026, was retained.

CSK's squad for IPL 2026: Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), MS Dhoni, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ayush Mhatre, Dewald Brevis, Noor Ahmad, Khaleel Ahmed, Anshul Kamboj, Nathan Ellis, Mukesh Choudhary, Jamie Overton, Sarfaraz Khan, Matt Henry, Rahul Chahar, Prashant Veer, Kartik Sharma, among others.

CSK open their IPL 2026 campaign on March 28.