Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will begin a new era when they start their IPL 2026 campaign against Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Monday. They are likely to give IPL debuts to two uncapped Indians: 19-year-old Kartik Sharma, and 20-year-old Prashant Veer, in the first game ever that they will play without both MS Dhoni or Suresh Raina.
CSK's potential XI could include only four players above the age of 30, with Matt Henry their oldest at 34. It's a departure from their previous, storied philosophy of packing their side with players with experience and proven international pedigree, typically over 30. Think of Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Ajinkya Rahane and Robin Uthappa.
In stark contrast, Kartik and Veer have a combined T20 experience of 21 official games. And CSK, of all franchises, snapped them up for INR 14.2 crore each, blowing up 65% of their purse at the IPL 2026 auction in December.
"It's the quality of young players coming through," CSK coach Stephen Fleming said in explanation of the change in philosophy on the eve of their season opener. "Before, it used to be a young player that lacked experience. But what you're seeing [now] is the young players that have been brought up in T20 cricket, and they have no fear.
"We've had a lot of success with experienced players, and they have been brought up playing the longer form of the game. But the game now has almost gone away from that. It's really about fours and sixes, which in some way is a bit of a shame, but you have to move [on] with the time. We have certainly moved into that space, and we're excited about the youth that we will put on show."
In IPL 2025, CSK were at the bottom of almost every batting metric, and finished at the bottom of the table. They are looking to improve their batting through these newbies, and through Sanju Samson, who was traded in at the cost of both Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran.
In a podcast on CSK's social channels, captain Ruturaj Gaikwad suggested he had a role in bringing Samson to CSK, and that he has been in touch with Samson since the end of IPL 2025.
"Definitely," Gaikwad said, when he was asked whether this was his team following the departure of the old guard. "I would say with regards to last year's team, we had a really good side, and I don't like to blame any players or point out any players. In IPL, especially when CSK picks someone, it's always something [to do with what] a player has or a player carries. I just feel we were not fortunate enough to grab those [big] moments or luck not favouring us, or [we had] a lot of injuries.
"This year, we've tried to see what we were lacking. Definitely, having top-order batsmen - the likes of Sanju and Ayush [Mhatre] as well - increases our attacking options, and Sanju for sure brings a lot of experience. He has played more than 100 IPL games, and has played international cricket for a long time as well. We now have a bunch of youth players who have done it in domestic cricket now for two-three years where they express themselves, and they have that X-factor in them."
Jadeja was a crucial part of three of CSK's five IPL title wins - he had secured their most recent one by hitting ten runs off the last two balls in 2023. But CSK realised they needed more X-factor players with future potential, and a wicketkeeper-batter to take over from Dhoni, who is currently nursing a calf injury and will turn 45 this July.
Just like Dhoni did all those years ago, Samson begins his CSK career as a T20 World Cup winner. Even before playing his first game for them, he is already the new face of a new-look team. Kartik and Veer, along with Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan and Urvil Patel, make CSK look even newer.
Back in 2018, when CSK marked their return to the IPL with a title, Fleming went on record saying their priority was to win titles with experienced players and not nurture youngsters. While experience served them well until 2023, they have now pivoted in a different direction.
During this period, the gap between the IPL and state leagues has narrowed, and CSK have seen other sides benefit from unconventional selections. Plucked out of the Delhi Premier League (DPL), Priyansh Arya opened the batting for Punjab Kings in IPL 2025 ahead of Australia international Josh Inglis, and Harnoor Singh, a former India Under-19 World Cup winner. Arya racked up 475 runs in 17 innings at a strike rate of almost 180, including a hundred against CSK.
Mystery spinner Digvesh Rathi, also a product of the DPL, became Lucknow Super Giants' go-to bowler, relegating Ravi Bishnoi to the sidelines. Vipraj Nigam, an uncapped allrounder from the UPT20 league, sparkled with both bat and ball for Delhi Capitals.
The IPL is moving at warp speed. It left CSK behind in 2025. Their team management acknowledged that and has tried to catch up in 2026.
At the auction in December, CSK passed on established names like Liam Livingstone, someone for whom they had bid aggressively in the past, and broke the bank for Kartik and Veer. Part of the shift towards youth happened midway through their 2025 season. Dewald Brevis, Mhatre and Urvil, who were all signed as replacement players, were the only specialist batters to have a strike rate of over 160 for CSK.
Kartik was also part of CSK's wider squad last season, and the team management was impressed with his ability to hit the ball high and far, even against international bowlers. Veer, the Emerging Player of the 2025 UPT20 league, was also put through the paces at CSK's high-performance academy on the outskirts of Chennai, and the left-arm spin-bowling allrounder worked with S Sriram, the franchise's assistant bowling coach, in the lead-up to IPL 2026.
Kartik and Veer are still raw, and are coming back from injuries, but CSK - and other franchises too - had identified them as players with high ceilings. Three months after the end of IPL 2025, in September, the winds of change began sweeping through the set-up. Under AR Srikkanth, the former Kolkata Knight Riders scout, CSK cast their net far and wide, conducting mass trials in Chennai, with coach Fleming also reportedly in attendance.
The result is a whole new-look for a team that has moved away from a philosophy that has made them one of the IPL's most successful franchises. The next couple of weeks will also give CSK a glimpse into what life after Dhoni looks like.