IPL 2025: 5 CSK costly flops who might not find a buyer next season

In the IPL’s high-stakes auction theatre, bold investments can backfire spectacularly. CSK’s IPL 2025 campaign demonstrated that star names and hefty pay packets count for little without consistent, match-defining performances. Squandering big bids doesn’t always translate into match-winning returns, and IPL 2025 proved a sobering campaign for Chennai Super Kings. As the 2026 auction looms, these five “costly flops” will need to prove their worth—or risk being left on the sidelines. Here are five of CSK’s priciest names whose disappointing performances may leave them without buyers in 2026.

1. Ravichandran Ashwin

M.A. Chidambaram Stadium was spin-friendly at one point thanks to Ashwin's cunning and shrewd spin, but 2025 was a whole different story. After spending ₹9.75 crore on the experienced off-spinner, CSK saw him take just seven wickets in nine games and bat for just 33 runs. Such a 9.29 economy and such low yields were heartbreakingly disappointing for a player who had led Chennai through many close games in the past.

2. Rahul Tripathi

Tripathi, who was hailed as a quick top-order alternative, entered the game to increase the level of aggression CSK played with, but he was dismissed after playing five games and scoring just 55 runs at 11 despite being paid a purse-stretching ₹3.4 lakh.

The middle order was frequently soaked as a result of his incapacity to rotate strike or launch CSK into flying beginnings, turning what should have been a powerplay spark into a damp squib. It could be quite difficult to find a team after such a season because he is not getting any younger either.

3. Rachin Ravindra 

Rachin never truly settled in the IPL 2025, despite impressing in other leagues. Although CSK spent ₹4 crore on him, the left-handed batter only managed 191 runs in eight innings with a poor strike rate of 128 after hitting a fifty in the season opener.

Such poor starts often result in implosions in a game when momentum is crucial. He has performed admirably for his country in the Indian subcontinent's Champions Trophy and ODI World Cup, but he has been unable to translate those performances into IPL wins for several seasons.

4. Devon Conway

A cornerstone of CSK’s 2023 title bid, Conway returned at a hefty ₹ 6.25 crore but struggled to cement his spot. He has done a fantastic job as an opener for the franchise, and so they put their trust in him, but he failed miserably this season. 

In his three appearances, he scored 94 runs at a strike rate of 127.03, only to be dropped in favour of rookies as the season progressed. For a batter of his pedigree, the inability to convert starts into big scores underlined a loss of form and faith that could prove terminal at next year’s auction.

5. Sam Curran

Bought as an impact all-rounder for ₹ 2.4 crore, Curran flashed his class once—with a brilliant 88 off 47 balls—but that purple patch papered over a string of failures. In his first two games, he scored just 4 and 8 while conceding 13 and 34 runs in single overs, before bowing out of the playing XI. 

Apart from that one match-winning knock, the England star’s returns were too scarce to warrant his price tag, even though he kept getting multiple chances to prove his worth.

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