From champions in 2021 to winless steak in 2022. Here are a few reasons behind Chennai's slump in form

Chennai slumped to their third consecutive defeat against Punjab on Sunday. They are yet to win a game this season and are clearly struggling to find their feet in the tournament.  While the men in yellow are not foreign to slow starts and patchy performances, this current run looks flustering. In this piece we will try to breakdown and look at the possible reasons behind Chennai’s flop show in 2022

• Lack of Intent: Losing a game is one thing but going down without a fight is just not acceptable. Jadeja and co have been on the receiving end three times thus far. First they were trounced by Kolkata then Lucknow and on Sunday it was Punjab who came on top. In all three games, the defending champions lacked intent and character. They failed to hold on their nerves at crunch moments and surrendered midway. If they really want to put an end to the losing streak, they will need to show some grit and fight with both bat and ball in hand. 
• Fragile Bowling Attack: The bowling prowess of Chennai looks thin. Without the services of Deepak Chahar, the new ball attack in particular lacks flair and looks fragile. So far, Jadeja has experimented with different pairs/combinations but none of them have worked in Chennai’s favour. The inexperienced duo of Mukesh Chaudhary and Tushar Deshpande have just not been good enough, Adam Milne is quick but that is just about it. Pretorious and Bravo despite being expensive have enjoyed success but with the old ball. Chris Jordan is the only bowler who has shown some promise. 
• Poor Captaincy: It is safe to say that Jadeja is still learning the art of captaincy. He is having a hard time adjusting to the new role which is evident with the way he marshalls his troops. Asking suggestions and advice from former skipper Dhoni has also not helped Chennai’s cause, as a result they have lost three games on the trott. We believe the team should now look past Dhoni and put their trust on the new skipper. As much as we appreciate the contributions from captain cool, we feel it is now time for the master to hand the baton to his apprentice. 
• Pinch Hitter? No thanks:  Chennai’s auction strategy was really confusing. They backed senior veterans over power hitters which seemed a little strange. They let go of Faf Du Plessis who was one of their leading run scorers last season. Not only was he an excellent batter but also an agile fielder. He could have also fit in perfectly to the role of captaincy. Chennai’ batting department comprises several seasoned batters who take time to get going. They do not have players with brute force who can be aggressive right from ball one. Shivam Dube and Moeen Ali possess the muscle but miss that fearless approach. A caribbean like Rovman Powell or Odean Smith would have been perfect for the yellow brigade.