'A frustrating season...' - Stephen Fleming Blames Fielding Lapses for CSK's IPL 2025 Struggles

After the Chennai Super Kings had lost four in a row, most recently to Punjab Kings, head coach Stephen Fleming blamed the team's poor performance in the present IPL 2025 on fielding errors. Fleming feels that the five-time champions' inability to convert opportunities on the field has been the difference between triumph and defeat, despite improvements in the batting department.

The CSK batsmen performed better in their attempt to reach the 220 that the Punjab Kings had set, but they were still 18 runs short of the mark on Tuesday. He said, "The positives are we batted a bit better. We've had some substance from the top order, which was a bit lacking, so we were able to construct the chase. We just weren't able to keep the run rate at a good level through the middle, and it was just too much towards the end. But we've been in the game for a lot longer, which is a positive aspect."

Stephen Fleming's Scathing Assessment:

CSK Head Coach Stephen Fleming on the loss:

🗣️ "The game was really lost in the field, I thought we were sloppy in the field."

- CSK's fielding woes continue to haunt them this season. 😞#StephenFleming#CSK#IPL2025#TATAIPL#ChennaiSuperKings#CSKFanspic.twitter.com/4RFv5vaxsH

— Akaran.A (@Akaran_1) April 9, 2025

This season, fielding has been a surprising problem for CSK. They have missed 11 catches in five games, and their catch efficiency of 68.5% is the second-worst in the league. In contrast, the league average for the 2022–2024 cycle was 80.3%. Notably, Priyansh Arya, who was given a lifeline twice before hammering a 39-ball century in the most recent game, was dropped during their innings in each of CSK's four defeats. 

The coach further added, "The game was really lost in the field. I thought we were sloppy in the field and we just lacked accuracy under pressure at certain times. We were put under pressure by a fine inning [from Arya], but we've got to be better than that in terms of shutting it down. So that's where the game got away from us. We're 18 runs short in a big run chase, so we can look at three sixes here and there. It's been a frustrating season so far. The catching has been poor, but it was poor from both sides tonight. Whether it was something in the light, I'm not sure, but certainly for us, that was an area of concern. We weren't too far away."

He concluded by saying, "If you're going to win the IPL, you need your top three-four to get a majority of the runs. We haven't been doing that, so it was pleasing that we got off to a more solid start. We weren't able to maintain a high momentum through the middle. Partly through good bowling, and maybe we were trying to push it too hard. It was something we'll review, but it's not a bad chase. It's three hits away, but we just lost a little bit of momentum through the middle."

Shashank Singh of the Punjab Kings, who helped his team rally from a dangerous 83/5 position with a 36-ball 52 and two crucial partnerships, stated that state-based T20 competitions are crucial for identifying players like Arya.

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