Chennai Super Kings won 71 of the 114 IPL matches they chased between 2008 and 2025, a win rate of 62.3%. Across the whole league in those seasons, chasing sides won 54.2% of decided matches. Over sixteen seasons of cricket (the franchise sat out 2016 and 2017 under suspension), no franchise built its identity more firmly around batting second. The method was simple and stubborn: lose the toss or win it, keep wickets in hand, take the chase deep and trust MS Dhoni to finish it in the nineteenth or twentieth over.
Then, somewhere between the 2021 title in Dubai and the 2025 wooden spoon, the method stopped working. From 2022 to 2025 CSK won 11 of 24 chases, 45.8%, below the league average for the first time. And after 25 April 2018, when Dhoni hit 70 off 34 balls to chase down 205 at the Chinnaswamy, Chennai went seven years without completing a full twenty-over chase of 180 or more. This deep-dive uses Cricsheet data for every CSK match from 2008 to 2025 (252 matches) to show how the chasing machine was built, why it was so good and when it stalled.
How Chennai Built a Franchise on the Chase
2008–2015: a batting-first side that chased better
The early CSK were not a chasing side by choice. Between 2008 and 2015, Chennai won 66 tosses and chose to bowl first in only 22 of them, 33%. They batted first 77 times in eight seasons and won 45 of those games (58.4%), a strong record in an era when the average IPL first-innings total sat between 150 and 166.
But even then, the chase was where they were best. In the same eight seasons CSK won 34 of 53 chases, 64.2%, against a league-wide chasing rate of 53.5%. The 2008 squad chased down 187 against Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla on 8 May 2008, with Dhoni named Player of the Match. On 18 April 2010 they chased 192 against Kings XI Punjab at Dharamsala, Dhoni again finishing it. And on 12 April 2012, at Chepauk, they hunted down 205 against Royal Challengers Bangalore, 208 for 5, a franchise record target that was only matched in 2018.
The batting-first record from that era is worth noting for what came later. When CSK posted 180 or more between 2008 and 2015 they won 18 of 24. When they posted less, they still won 27 of 53, a coin flip, because the attack of that era could defend modest totals: 142 for 6 against Pune Warriors at Chepauk on 25 April 2011, 134 for 6 against Kolkata Knight Riders at Chepauk on 28 April 2015.
2018–2021: the peak of the chasing machine
The franchise returned from its two-year suspension in 2018 as a team built to chase, and the toss data shows the shift was deliberate. From 2018 to 2025 CSK won 62 tosses and chose to bowl first in 46 of them, 74%. They had more than doubled their preference for chasing.
The results justified it. From 2018 to 2021 Chennai won 26 of 37 chases, 70.3%, while the league as a whole won 57.3%. The 2018 title season was the purest example: eight wins from ten chases. In their only home game that year, on 10 April 2018, they chased 202 against Kolkata Knight Riders at Chepauk, with Sam Billings named Player of the Match, before Cauvery water protests moved the rest of their home games to Pune. Fifteen days later came the 205 chase at the Chinnaswamy. The season ended with Shane Watson's unbeaten century against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the final at the Wankhede, won by eight wickets.
The 2021 title team went further. Chennai chased six times in 2021 and won all six, the only perfect chasing season in franchise history. The qualifier against Delhi Capitals in Dubai on 10 October 2021, won by four wickets with Ruturaj Gaikwad as Player of the Match, was the template: a top order that set a platform, wickets kept in reserve and the finish left to the senior batters.
The flaw inside the machine
The same years carried a warning. Between 2018 and 2021 CSK batted first 26 times and won only 12, 46.2%. They were winning titles because they chased so well, not because they were a complete side. When forced to set a total, they often did not set enough: 131 against Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 1 at Chepauk on 7 May 2019, 114 against Mumbai at Sharjah on 23 October 2020, 125 against Rajasthan Royals at Abu Dhabi four days earlier. The 2020 season, the first in which CSK missed the playoffs, contained just one win from four batting-first games.
2022–2025: when chasing stopped working
The last four seasons of Cricsheet data are where the identity broke. From 2022 to 2025 Chennai won 11 of 24 chases (45.8%) against a league rate of 49.7%. Their batting-first record was no better, 14 wins from 33 (42.4%). The 2023 title, won with a 10-5 record, sits between a ninth-place finish in 2022 and a tenth-place finish in 2025.
The cause sits in the scores. The average first-innings total across the IPL rose from 159 in 2021 to 183 in 2023, 190 in 2024 and 189 in 2025. A chase built on preserving wickets until the last five overs works when the target is 165. It does not work when the target is 215, and CSK kept facing 215.
The Data: Every Chase, Banded by Target
Chasing record by target, 2008–2025
| Target set (first-innings total) | CSK chasing W-L | CSK win % | All IPL chases win % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 160 | 43-9 | 82.7% | 76.4% |
| 160 to 179 | 19-13 | 59.4% | 52.6% |
| 180 or more | 9-21 | 30.0% | 29.6% |
| 180 or more, 2008–2015 | 6-8 | 42.9% | 26.2% |
| 180 or more, 2018–2025 | 3-13 | 18.8% | 29.2% |
Against small and medium targets, CSK beat the league average in every band. Against big targets they were average across the whole period, but that average hides two different teams. The 2008–2015 side won 43% of its 180-plus chases when the league won 26%. The post-2018 side won 19% when the league won 29%.
Since 25 April 2018 CSK have faced a target of 180 or more thirteen times up to the end of the 2025 season. They won once, the rain-reduced 2023 final against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on 29 May 2023, where Gujarat's 214 became a revised target of 171 in 15 overs and Devon Conway was Player of the Match. Every full-length chase of 180 or more in that run ended in defeat, including 2 runs short against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Chinnaswamy on 3 May 2025 and 6 runs short against Rajasthan Royals at Guwahati on 30 March 2025.
CSK by era: bat first vs chase
| Era | Batting first W-L | Bat-first win % | Chasing W-L | Chase win % | League chase win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008–2015 | 45-32 | 58.4% | 34-19 | 64.2% | 53.5% |
| 2018–2021 | 12-14 | 46.2% | 26-11 | 70.3% | 57.3% |
| 2022–2025 | 14-19 | 42.4% | 11-13 | 45.8% | 49.7% |
| All seasons | 71-65 | 52.2% | 71-43 | 62.3% | 54.2% |
Season by season, 2008–2025
| Season | W-L (Cricsheet results) | Batting first | Chasing | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 9-7 | 4-5 | 5-2 | Runners-up |
| 2009 | 8-6 | 6-4 | 2-2 | Semi-finalists |
| 2010 | 9-6 | 5-3 | 4-3 | Champions |
| 2011 | 11-5 | 8-4 | 3-1 | Champions |
| 2012 | 10-8 | 5-7 | 5-1 | Runners-up |
| 2013 | 12-6 | 7-1 | 5-5 | Runners-up |
| 2014 | 10-6 | 3-4 | 7-2 | Qualifier 2 |
| 2015 | 10-7 | 7-4 | 3-3 | Runners-up |
| 2018 | 11-5 | 3-3 | 8-2 | Champions |
| 2019 | 10-7 | 3-3 | 7-4 | Runners-up |
| 2020 | 6-8 | 1-3 | 5-5 | Seventh |
| 2021 | 11-5 | 5-5 | 6-0 | Champions |
| 2022 | 4-10 | 3-7 | 1-3 | Ninth |
| 2023 | 10-5 | 6-3 | 4-2 | Champions |
| 2024 | 7-7 | 4-4 | 3-3 | Fifth |
| 2025 | 4-10 | 1-5 | 3-5 | Tenth |
No-results are excluded. Two patterns stand out. In three of the five title seasons (2011, 2018 and 2021), CSK's chasing win rate was higher than their batting-first rate. And the two worst seasons, 2022 and 2025, are the only ones where they lost more chases than they won.
Chepauk: the fortress and the crack
MA Chidambaram Stadium has been the engine room. From 2008 to 2025 CSK won 51 of 76 decided matches there, 67.1%, and the bat-first versus chase split almost disappears at home: 31-15 batting first, 20-10 chasing. Away from Chennai the gap opens wide, 40-50 batting first (44.4%) and 51-33 chasing (60.7%). The slow Chepauk surface let Chennai defend totals that would not have survived anywhere else, and their chasing skill carried them on the road.
The fortress held for a long time. CSK won 33 of 46 decided home games from 2008 to 2015 and 17 of 24 from 2018 to 2024. Then 2025 broke it: one win in six at Chepauk, against Mumbai Indians on 23 March 2025. Batting first at home they made 103 for 9 against Kolkata on 11 April 2025 and were bowled out for 154 by Sunrisers Hyderabad on 25 April 2025, and both totals were chased with ease.
Who won the matches
| Player | Player of the Match awards in CSK wins, 2008–2025 |
|---|---|
| MS Dhoni | 16 |
| Ravindra Jadeja | 16 |
| Suresh Raina | 12 |
| Ruturaj Gaikwad | 10 |
| Michael Hussey | 10 |
| Shane Watson | 6 |
| Faf du Plessis | 6 |
The list tells the same story as the numbers. Dhoni, the finisher who made the chase-deep plan possible, shares the top spot with Jadeja, who closed out the 2023 final with a six and a four off the last two balls. Raina and Hussey anchored the first era. Dhoni and Gaikwad are the only two of the top five still at the franchise, after Jadeja moved to Rajasthan Royals in the trade that brought Sanju Samson to Chennai.
Legacy Impact: What It Means Today
The chasing identity is part of why CSK became the most consistent franchise in IPL history: ten finals and five titles, in 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021 and 2023. It also explains why the decline since 2022 has been so sharp. A team designed to chase 170 with wickets in hand found itself chasing 210 in a league where Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bengaluru were routinely posting 250. Keeping wickets for the last five overs is no help when the required rate is 12 from the first ball.
The 2026 season offered the first sign that Chennai can adapt. In early May 2026 CSK won three chases in a row: 160 against Mumbai Indians at Chepauk on 2 May, 156 against Delhi Capitals in Delhi on 5 May and, most significantly, 204 against Lucknow Super Giants at Chepauk on 10 May, reached at 208 for 5 in 19.2 overs. It was the first full-length chase of 180 or more CSK had completed since April 2018, and only 2 runs short of the franchise's biggest target chased. The season still ended without a playoff place, closed by an 89-run defeat to Gujarat Titans at Chepauk on 21 May after Gujarat made 229.
The squad that heads towards 2027 under Gaikwad has a different shape from the one that won in 2021 and 2023. Sanju Samson arrived from Rajasthan, Jadeja went the other way, and young batters such as Ayush Mhatre and Dewald Brevis give the top order a more aggressive look. The open question is whether Chennai want to stay a chasing side at all, or whether the answer is to bat first and post the 200-plus totals their attack has struggled to defend against in recent seasons.
That is the question the CricMind Oracle tracks before every match. The Oracle prediction engine weighs toss, venue and recent form, so a CSK side that wins the toss at Chepauk and bowls first is rated differently from one that is asked to set a total in Ahmedabad or Bengaluru. The chasing splits in this piece, especially the gap between targets under and over 180, are exactly the kind of history that shifts a pre-match call by a few percentage points.
For the wider picture of how all ten franchises perform batting second, see our IPL chase gene analysis, and for the full story of Chennai's five titles, our CSK franchise deep-dive.
Three Takeaways
- CSK were the IPL's best chasing side for a decade. From 2008 to 2021 they won 60 of 90 chases, 66.7%, and in 2021 they won all six. The toss data shows they chose to chase deliberately after 2018, bowling first in 74% of the tosses they won.
- The method broke when totals rose. Since April 2018 CSK lost every full-length chase of 180 or more until May 2026, while the league average first-innings total climbed from 159 in 2021 to 189 in 2025. From 2022 to 2025 they were below the league average chasing for the first time.
- Chepauk covered the weakness until 2025. Chennai won 67.1% of decided home games from 2008 to 2025 and were equally good batting first or chasing there, but 2025 brought one home win in six. The 204 chase against Lucknow in May 2026 is the first sign the team can win high-scoring games again.
FAQ
What is CSK's chasing record in the IPL?
From 2008 to 2025 Chennai Super Kings won 71 of 114 decided chases, 62.3%, according to Cricsheet data. The league-wide chasing win rate across the same seasons was 54.2%. Their best chasing season was 2021, with six wins from six chases.
What is CSK's highest successful run chase in the IPL?
The biggest target CSK have chased down in a full twenty-over match is 206, achieved twice: 208 for 5 against Royal Challengers Bangalore at Chepauk on 12 April 2012, and 207 for 5 against RCB at the Chinnaswamy on 25 April 2018. Next comes the 204 they chased against Lucknow Super Giants at Chepauk on 10 May 2026, reached at 208 for 5 in 19.2 overs.
Do CSK prefer to bat first or chase?
Since 2018 they have preferred to chase. From 2018 to 2025 CSK chose to bowl first in 46 of the 62 tosses they won, 74%. Between 2008 and 2015 they chose to bowl first in only 22 of 66, 33%.
How good is CSK's record at Chepauk?
From 2008 to 2025 CSK won 51 of 76 decided IPL matches at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, 67.1%. They were 31-15 batting first and 20-10 chasing there. Their worst home season was 2025, with one win from six.
How many IPL finals have CSK won while chasing?
Two of CSK's five titles were won chasing: 2018 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede, by eight wickets, and 2023 against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad, by five wickets on a revised target. The 2010, 2011 and 2021 finals were all won batting first, by 22, 58 and 27 runs. Across all knockout matches from 2008 to 2025, CSK were 9-5 chasing and 8-4 batting first.
Who has won the most Player of the Match awards for CSK?
MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja share the lead with 16 awards each in CSK wins from 2008 to 2025. Suresh Raina has 12, and Ruturaj Gaikwad and Michael Hussey have 10 each.
Why did CSK struggle in 2022 and 2025?
Both seasons combined a weak batting-first record with poor chasing. In 2022 CSK won 3 of 10 batting first and 1 of 4 chasing. In 2025 they won 1 of 6 batting first and 3 of 8 chasing. In 2025 they lost all five chases of 180 or more, as average first-innings totals across the IPL rose to 189.
Source: Cricsheet IPL match and innings data 2008–2025 (252 CSK matches, 1,169 IPL matches) and CricMind match records for IPL 2026.