Former Indian cricketer and analyst Ambati Rayudu reckoned that the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) would be aiming to have Shivam Dube bat up the order with Dewald Brevis in the forthcoming IPL 2027 season.
It’s worth noting that CSK was involved in a direct player swap with SRH ahead of the IPL 2027 retention deadline. Notably, CSK got the services of Liam Livingstone and Jack Edwards while SRH roped in Nathan Ellis and Khaleel Ahmed.
Speaking during a discussion on Cricbuzz, Rayudu asserted that CSK bought Livingstone to promote Dube up the order. Notably, Duble had an inconsistent season as a finisher last time around.
“There is a lot of thanksgiving going on there for CSK in the last six months. I can make sense of why they have done this because they want Dube to bat higher with Brevis because Dube has been their go-to finisher in the last season, which hasn’t clearly worked. And also, Ellis had been brought in place of Pathirana last year, but Ellis could not be a part of the setup for a long time,” Rayudu said on Cricbuzz.
CSK ended the IPL 2026 season in eighth place. Subsequently, Rayudu stated that CSK failed to have proper all-rounders in the lower middle-order last season, which resulted in their exit from the league phase.
“I just think that they need a finisher; that is where they are relying on Livingstone. Overton and Jack Edwards are someone they have brought in to bat at No. 7/8 because Akeal Hosein can also do that job for them. I think they want to fit in those all-rounders at seven and eight because that has been an area where things have not been that great for CSK in the last three years,” he added.
