'I don’t care how old the players are' - Stephen Fleming on Chennai Super Kings' future plans after IPL 2025

There is a lot of questioning surrounding Chennai Super Kings (CSK) this season, as they are currently languishing at the bottom of the table. Their head coach - Stephen Fleming, has opened up on the possible changes within the squad going forward as they plan on upcoming season now.

The CSK team has been known to back a lot of experienced players in their squad - a formula that has worked successfully for them over the years. However, the current season has seen them struggle, with most of the experienced players struggling to find their feet, one among them being captain MS Dhoni. Looking at the performances of the youngsters within the squad, there have been questions asked regarding the Yellow Army changing their plans in the future. However, Fleming has stated that he is focused on finding the perfect balance in the team and does not care about the age factor.

“I don’t care how old the players are, the experience has served us really well over the past years that we have had. It hasn’t worked out quite well for us this year. I assume it could be a bit of form, it could be strategy, it could be a number of things that just don’t quite work out. The competition is very even,” the five-time IPL-winning coach said.

“The fact that we have been so consistent over a number of years to have a poor year has shaken everybody. It is understandable given the excellence with which the franchises are operating. The challenge for us is making sure that we go over everything that we are doing and have done in the past, to make sure we are keeping up with the philosophies, but also identifying talent. It’s one thing to say, We want a team full of young players, but you’ve got to find them and make sure they fit into the experience, which, again, I do like,” the former New Zealand international added.

Most importantly, it’s getting the player and the personnel right: Stephen Fleming

The head coach supported his statement further, bringing up the top performers within the tournament. Fleming mentioned that there is some experience among the players who are performing, which is sprinkled with some great performances by some young and fearless cricketers in the season.

“You have a look at the top run scores and wickets. It seems to be a bit of experience there, but what it’s sprinkled with is some amazing performance by young players who are playing sort of fearless cricket, so it’s getting that balance right, but most importantly, it’s getting the player and the personnel right," he concluded.