Chennai Super Kings (ANI Photo)

Chennai Super Kings’ poor start to IPL 2026 continued with a heavy defeat to Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and former star Ravichandran Ashwin did not hold back while reflecting on the team’s struggles and his own difficult final season. CSK slumped to their third straight loss after being outplayed at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. RCB piled up a massive 250/3, powered by explosive knocks from Tim David (70* off 25), Rajat Patidar (48* off 19) and Devdutt Padikkal (50 off 29). In response, CSK never quite recovered from early blows despite resistance from Sarfaraz Khan and Prashant Veer, eventually getting bowled out for 207. As the defeat exposed deeper issues within the side, Ashwin reflected on his own decision to step away from the IPL, admitting that he could have continued but was mentally drained after a disappointing campaign. “Any suggestions for sad songs? I am watching the match from a neutral point of view, but remember that I recently spent a disappointing season with CSK, it was a disappointing season for me personally as well. Honestly, in my mind, I could have played more, because emotionally, I just did not have the bandwidth to play,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel. When asked to revisit that phase, Ashwin made it clear that it remains a sensitive subject for him. “I don’t want to go there, it’s mentally disturbing. It was very painful for me. I don’t want to go there. I discussed a little then I said, I started in Chennai, I am finishing in my hometown, it’s fine. I decided to retire myself as it would not have created a headache for them (the management) over whether to retain me or release. They would also save Rs 10 crore if I go. I am still disappointed. I had expectations, I had hope,” he added. Despite predicting an RCB win, Ashwin admitted he expected a stronger showing from CSK, especially after signs of improvement in their previous outing. “I had expectations from today. I know, I picked RCB to win, because they have strength. But, I banked on the improvement that CSK showed in the last game. I had a little faith on the fact that RCB were coming into this match after a break. The way RCB played, they warned everyone,” he said. CSK’s current approach has also come under scrutiny, particularly their shift towards a younger squad. Ashwin questioned how effectively these players are being nurtured in a high-pressure environment. “These young boys, you have to give them good practice, you have to give them intensity, you have to give them atmosphere from here on. How are they going to do this?” he remarked. The veteran spinner was also critical of certain tactical calls, especially how bowlers are being utilised. He pointed out that some players are being asked to execute skills that may not suit their strengths. “You can watch SA20 to plan against. Jamie Overton isn’t good at bowling yorkers. You are making him do that. You have to play according to the bowler’s strengths. You are making him bowl wide yorkers from around the stumps. Tim David smashed them hard,” he said. With results going against them and questions mounting over both strategy and execution, CSK now face an early-season challenge to regroup and find direction before the campaign slips further away.

Chennai Super Kings’ Jamie Overton (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)

Amid an otherwise disastrous IPL 2026 opener for Chennai Super Kings, Jamie Overton refused to go quietly. On a chaotic day at Barsapara Stadium in Guwahati, CSK were bowled out for just 127 by a ruthless Rajasthan Royals attack, but Overton’s knock provided a rare bright spot.Walking in with CSK reeling at 82/8, Overton played a defiant innings, scoring 43 off 36 balls. His effort now holds a special place in CSK history: it is the highest score by any CSK batter at No. 8 or below in the IPL, surpassing MS Dhoni’s previous best of 37* against Delhi Capitals in 2024. Overton’s innings was a mix of patience, timing, and power, showing that even in the midst of collapse, resilience can shine.The rest of the CSK lineup struggled from the start. Sanju Samson fell early attempting a slog over mid-wicket off Nandre Burger, while skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad’s aerial stroke off Jofra Archer saw his stumps dislodged. Burger, Archer, and Ravindra Jadeja ran through the CSK batting order, leaving the home team in tatters at 57/6 after just eight overs.The chase was a spectacle for Royals, led by 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. The young sensation blazed his way to a 15-ball half-century, including a six over point off Matt Henry and two towering sixes off spinner Noor Ahmad, becoming the third fastest to fifty in IPL history. With Yashasvi Jaiswal (38* off 36) and Riyan Parag (14* off 11) supporting him, Royals finished the chase in 12.1 overs, making light of the target.While Royals’ collective brilliance and Sooryavanshi’s heroics stole the headlines, CSK were left searching for answers after a disastrous opening day.

Harry Brook celebrates his century during the T20 World Cup cricket match between England and Pakistan in Pallekele, Sri Lanka. (AP/PTI)

TimesofIndia.com in Kandy: As the adage goes, “tough times don’t last, tough people do.” It syncs beautifully with Harry Brook.In the past few months, the England white-ball captain has been in the news not for his magnificent batting but for his off-field antics. Last year, during the one-day series against New Zealand, he was involved in an altercation with a nightclub bouncer in Wellington. On the same night of the altercation, Brook and England teammate Jacob Bethell were filmed drinking, and the video was later posted on social media.

Brook then lied to the media, saying that he was on his own when he got punched by the nightclub bouncer on England’s tour of New Zealand that preceded the Ashes. He later conceded that it was a lie, as there were others with him and he lied to protect them. Brook was later fined around £30,000 and was given a final warning for his future conduct by the England Cricket Board (ECB).Brook had a frustrating Ashes Down Under, where he managed to cross fifty only twice in ten innings. The, then 26-year-old, finished the Ashes 2025–26 with 358 runs from five Tests at an average of 39.77.In the last two games of the ongoing T20 World Cup, Brook, who celebrated his birthday a couple of days ago, has shown signs of maturity both with the bat and his acumen in the field, which is pivotal for a great leader.

Harry Brook warms up ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eight match between England and Pakistan at Pallekele. (Getty Images)

Against Sri Lanka at Pallakele in Kandy, while defending a modest total of 147, his bowling changes and field placements were right on the money. Against Pakistan on Tuesday, it was his bat that did the talking when his team was under immense pressure. Between these two matches, Brook has aged a year and grown in leaps and bounds as a leader.After his sublime century on a track where his fellow teammates struggled, the England white-ball captain admitted that it has been the “hardest” few months for him as a cricketer.“It’s probably been the hardest winter of my life to be honest,” he told reporters after England’s decisive two-wicket win over Pakistan. “There’s been a lot of stuff behind the scenes as well as not behind the scenes, but yes, it was just nice to see some rewards from my hard work away from the ground.”The chosen one

England’s captain Harry Brook leaves the ground after losing his wicket during the T20 World Cup cricket match between England and Pakistan in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026. (AP)

Brook made his international debut in a T20I match four years ago in the West Indies. Since then, his graph has only gone in an upward direction.And without any doubt, he has been the poster boy of “Bazball”, the ultra-aggressive, high-risk, and positive style of play adopted by the England men’s Test cricket team under captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum.After hitting his maiden T20I hundred on Tuesday night, Brook revealed that it was coach McCullum’s idea that he should bat at No. 3 against Pakistan, citing his good record against them. “Baz is the mastermind there. He had a discussion with me this morning about going up the order and trying to maximise the powerplay and thankfully it paid off,” Brook said with a smile on his face.Under McCullum, Brook first blossomed as a cricketer. Now, the anointed one is developing into a leader as well. McCullum had backed the youngster when he was going through a tough phase. Earlier this month, before the start of the T20 World Cup, McCullum praised the way Harry Brook has dealt with controversies but admitted his white-ball captain is a “work in progress” away from the cricket field.“He’s had a hard time of late off the field, but he’s a tough lad to be able to put that aside and still lead these boys in the manner that he did, and show the tactical nous that he has as a cricketer was outstanding,” McCullum had said after Harry Brook-led England’s 2-1 ODI series victory and a 3-0 clean sweep in T20s against Sri Lanka.“I do sometimes think that people think that Brooky’s not that clever. I couldn’t disagree with that more. He wears his intelligence lightly. He’s got a very good tactical cricket brain.“He’s a work in progress off the field. He’s not alone with that, and that’s our job to help shepherd him through. But on the field, he’s certainly excelling at the moment.”Growing in stature

Harry Brook is first captain to smash century in T20 World Cup; joins Buttler, Malan in elite list of English batters

Harry Brook hit ten fours and four sixes during his sublime knock against Pakistan, and the batter also ran twos nine times, which is something that has never been seen in Brook’s batsmanship.In the last ball of the powerplay, Mohammad Nawaz fired it flat on the stumps. Brook used the depth of the crease to step back and launched the heave straight back over the bowler’s head. There was an oomph about that shot. He did go on to hit three more, but that flat-batted shot sent the signal to the Pakistan camp that, despite them being ahead in the game courtesy of Shaheen Shah Afridi’s three-wicket burst in the powerplay, England were still in the match because their captain was not giving up easily.He did agree that after he got out to Shaheen Shah Afridi and when Nawaz bagged two quick wickets in the 19th over, he started to have a flashback of the Oval Test, where Mohammed Siraj had turned the match around for India.“I thought it was going to be another Oval against India. Thankfully we managed to get over the line and Jof hit that boundary at the end. But yeah, it did get a little bit nervy there and like I said, thankfully we got the win,” he said.

Recently, former England captain Michael Vaughan had slammed Brook for not stepping up in the big match. He did answer Vaughan’s criticism with his knock and then said, “I wasn’t even on my radar to be honest. I just go out there and try and win games of cricket for England and whichever team I’m playing for. Thankfully I’ve managed to do that tonight and we’ve got the main aim which was to get through to the semis.”Brook has also grown as a captain in the dressing room and has earned the respect of the senior pros.After the win against Sri Lanka, left-arm spinner Liam Dawson was all praise for the way the young captain operated the spinners. “I think the way Brookie captained today was phenomenal, how he used us all differently,” Dawson, who picked up three wickets against Pakistan, had said on Sunday.After the win over Pakistan, it was the turn of bowling all-rounder Jamie Overton to heap praise on the ‘skip. “It’s probably one of the best knocks I’ve seen. Full credit to Brookie. He put his hand up today to bat at three and he led from the front today. Hopefully, he can keep going for us into the next few games,” Overton told reporters in the mixed zone.“The way he approaches cricket, it’s a great feeling to be able to be a part of that side. He wants us to go out there and play with a smile on our face and enjoy cricket. That’s when we grew up playing. We wanted to go out and have fun. It feels like we’re having fun out there at the moment. He’s sort of setting the standards of what we want to do, and if he keeps playing like that, we’ll go a long way in this competition,” Overton added.

Pakistan’s Shaheen Shah Afridi shakes hands with England’s captain Harry Brook after bowling the latter out during the T20 World Cup cricket match in Pallekele, Sri Lanka. (AP)

At the post-match press conference, after a while, the question of Jos Buttler’s horrendous form took centre stage. Buttler now has 62 runs in six innings. He has not passed 40 in his last 18 international innings.“He’s a powerhouse of world cricket. He’s done it on every stage. He’s won World Cups in ODIs and T20s, and it’s just a matter of time,” Brook defended his senior pro.“I think people have got to give him a little bit of slack to be honest. He’s played over 500 T20s, he’s played 150 odd for England, and he’s still averaging 35 while striking at 145. He’s arguably our best player, and he’s just not hitting them out of the middle at the minute. But yeah, I feel like people have probably got to cut him a little bit of slack.”In the past three days, Brook has not only grown a year older but also wiser, which is indeed a great sign for England.