‘The bigger area they need to address is their overseas combination’ – Sanjay Bangar analyses CSK’s concerns after dismal IPL 2026 campaign

Gujarat Titans (GT) defeated the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 89 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday, May 21. They have all but confirmed themselves a finish in the top two, which will give them two chances to reach the finals.

It has been a superb campaign so far for the Gujarat Titans. They finished the round-robin phase with nine wins and five defeats from 14 matches.

Former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar was effusive in his praise for the Titans’ bowling attack, mentioning how the trio of Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada, and Rashid Khan have tormented the batters in IPL 2026. On Thursday, they picked up three wickets apiece.

Bangar also opined that the Super Kings, whose hopes of reaching the playoffs were squashed after Thursday’s defeat, need to rope in experienced overseas players ahead of next season to turn things around.

“CSK already have a strong Indian core with players like Ruturaj, Urvil Patel, Ayush, and Anshul Kambhoj showing promise. The bigger area they need to address is their overseas combination. They need more consistency from their overseas batters and greater depth in the pace department. Finding experienced overseas players who can make an immediate impact will be important for them moving forward,” he mentioned.

Deep Dasgupta lauds GT’s mantra for success

Deep Dasgupta lauded the simplicity in the Titans’ philosophy, where every player in the side is given a well-defined role.

“GT’s philosophy is very simple, and that is one of the biggest reasons behind their success. If you look closely, everyone in that side has a clearly defined role. The same two bowlers operate in those phases irrespective of whether they concede runs or not. The openers continue to play the same brand of cricket,” Dasgupta said.

Their thought process is extremely clear, and they keep things very simple. Even when you look at the squad composition, they intentionally kept the squad compact rather than having too many options. They let go of players like David Miller and Sherfane Rutherford, so it was clearly a deliberate strategy to keep the group tight and consistent,” he added.