3 CSK players who are not in form heading into IPL 2025 ft. Ruturaj Gaikwad

Five-time champions Chennai Super Kings have started their training camp ahead of IPL 2025. A majority of the CSK players have linked up with the franchise and started their preparations for the new season of the Indian Premier League.

As always, all eyes will be on wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni whenever CSK play their matches in IPL 2025. Dhoni will play his first-ever IPL season as an 'uncapped' player this time. Although he does not play any other tournament, he looked in fantastic touch during the net sessions before IPL 2025.

While Dhoni seems in great form, the following three CSK players are not in the best form heading into IPL 2025.

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#1 CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad struggled in domestic cricket ahead of IPL 2025

Ruturaj Gaikwad had a forgettable outing with Maharashtra in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024/25 tournament. The Chennai Super Kings captain returned with scores of 7, 5, 13, 12 and 8 in his last five innings of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

After the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Gaikwad turned up for Maharashtra in a Ranji Trophy match against Baroda, where he got out for 10 runs in the first innings. While he followed it up with a 83-ball 89 in the second innings, CSK fans will be a little concerned about his form.

Gaikwad is a champion player. Hence, he will likely put in the hard yards in the nets ahead of IPL 2025 and get his confidence back for CSK's season opener against the Mumbai Indians on March 23.

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#2 Rahul Tripathi

Another Maharashtra-based right-handed batter to feature on the list is Rahul Tripathi. He is expected to be the new number three batter of the Chennai Super Kings team in IPL 2025.

Tripathi has only one half-century in his last 10 domestic matches. It came for Maharashtra in a Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Andhra, where he scored 69 runs. However, apart from that, he does not have any score of more than 30.

In his last three innings, Tripathi has managed only 44 runs. It will be interesting to see if the Chennai Super Kings pick him in the playing XI straightaway.

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#3 Deepak Hooda

Like Rahul Tripathi, all-rounder Deepak Hooda also has only one score of 50 or more in his last 10 matches. Hooda scored an unbeaten 60 for Rajasthan in a Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Meghalaya at the Wankhede Stadium.

Hooda has two ducks in his last 10 games. Plus, he does not have any wickets to show in his last 10 outings as well. The CSK management will expect Hooda to play an important role in the middle overs - both with the bat and the ball.

CSK's team management is known for bringing out the best of the players who have struggled for form. It will be interesting to see if the environment provided by CSK helps the likes of Rahul Tripathi and Deepak Hooda regain their confidence in IPL.