Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad will have a headache going into their first IPL 2025 match against Mumbai Indians at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday. Having finished fifth in his first year as captain in IPL 2025, a top four finish will be on Ruturaj Gaikwad’s mind this year.
However, going into the big match straightaway, the CSK skipper has a decision to make as to who will be his opening partner at the top of the order – Devon Conway or Rachin Ravindra.
While Devon Conway forged a great stand with Ruturaj Gaikwad in 2023, Rachin Ravindra showed why he is one of the top-rated with his Player of the Series performance in the Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai.
Meanwhile, there are a lot of new faces in the CSK squad save the skipper, MS Dhoni, Shivam Dube and Ravindra Jadeja. On the other hand, Mumbai Indians will be missing the services of Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya against CSK.
While captain Hardik Pandya is serving a one-match ban, Jasprit Bumrah is expected not to return untill the first half of the tournament due to a back injury. The pacer is currently under rehabilitation at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
CSK vs MI IPL 2025 probable playing XIs
Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, Shivam Dube, Deepak Hooda, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (WK), Sam Curran, Ravichandran Ashwin, Noor Ahmad, Matheesha Pathirana
Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Will Jacks, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, Raj Angad Bawa, Deepak Chahar, Mitchell Santner, Trent Boult, Arjun Tendulkar