Chennai Super Kings’ 3-match winning streak came to an end against Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 campaign on Friday, putting their playoff qualification at risk as well. However, after the game, former Chennai player S Badrinath slammed skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad for his ‘tactical blunder’ that played a key role in the team’s defeat against LSG as well.

“CSK losing because of team selection errors is becoming a pattern this season. Leaving out Akeal Hosein on this track made zero sense. Another game, another missed opportunity,” Badrinath said on X (formerly Twitter).

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Ruturaj Gaikwad, however, refused to press the panic button after the defeat and urged his teammates to focus on the next two matches as well.

“I felt there was a bit of something for the fast bowlers. You know, when we batted, we found it difficult to hit it off the hard lengths probably, their bowlers executed it really well. But I think we were looking at 160 or 170 and we ended up getting 180. So I thought, probably nothing much better we could have done from a batting point of view, but I think credit to them. They batted really well and never know if the pitch got better or not, but I think they played some extraordinary shots,” he said.

“Just make sure we come back and improve what are the areas we need to improve and yes, try and adapt and assess the conditions as quickly as possible and it is a simple calculation for us. Win each and every game for however many games we play. So I think nothing simple. I mean, it is simple, nothing complicated. So quite easy here on for us. Nothing to worry about. Just make sure we have a good day. Make it count whoever has a good day and hope that we hope that we turn the things around,” Ruturaj Gaikwad concluded.