The business end of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 has arrived. From here on, every result will affect the playoffs qualification scenario.
One of the top four sides losing or the bottom dwellers winning will have an impact since no one has officially qualified yet.
CSK's resurgence in IPL 2026
Exactly a month back, no one would've given the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) a chance to make the cutoff. The 5-time champions had lost their opening three games, and that too with relative ease. MS Dhoni and Dewald Brevis weren't fit for selection. Nathan Ellis was ruled out. Ruturaj Gaikwad wasn't scoring, and the costly trade of Sanju Samson had yielded 22 runs.
Now, it's all flipped on its head. Despite losing Ayush Mhatre and Khaleel Ahmed to injury, CSK are in a great position. They've won 6 of their last 8 matches and are on a 3-game winning streak. All of a sudden, everything is clicking. After beating the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at home, CSK now have the same number of wins as the Punjab Kings (PBKS).
Can CSK qualify for IPL 2026 Playoffs?
CSK stumbled post-Urvil Patel's dismissal in the 10th over but managed to cross the line. Now, the 5-time champions are playing fifth and have the same number of points as RCB and the Rajasthan Royals, albeit having played one extra match. One has to look at what CSK can do themselves to qualify for the playoffs and how others might affect them.
Qualification Chances After CSK vs LSG (May 15)
| Result | CSK | PBKS | RR | SRH |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| If LSG Win | 27% | 49% | 46% | 77% |
| If CSK Win | 65% | 36% | 36% | 67% |
Top 2 Qualification Chances After CSK vs LSG (May 15)
| Result | CSK | GT |
|---|---|---|
| If LSG Win | 2% | 78% |
| If CSK Win | 20% | 70% |
If CSK wins the remaining 3 matches - will end with 18 points and can qualify since SRH and GT won't be able to get more than 18 points. Then it might come down to NRR.
If CSK win the remaining 2 matches - will end with 16 points. Then, they'll hope that at least one SRH, GT, RCB, RR, and PBKS don't get more than 16 points and have a worse NRR than them.
If CSK wins just 1 match - will end with 14 points. It'll be virtually impossible to qualify.
CSK remaining IPL 2026 fixtures
| Date | Opposition | Venue | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 15 | LSG (away) | Lucknow | 7:30 PM |
| May 18 | SRH | Chennai | 7:30 PM |
| May 21 | GT (away) | Ahmedabad | 7:30 PM |
IPL 2026 Points Table (after match 54)
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Lost | No Result | Points | Net Run Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | RCB | 11 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 14 | +1.103 |
| 2 | SRH | 11 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 14 | +0.737 |
| 3 | GT | 11 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 14 | +0.228 |
| 4 | PBKS | 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 13 | +0.571 |
| 5 | CSK | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 12 | +0.185 |
| 6 | RR | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 12 | +0.082 |
| 7 | KKR | 10 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 9 | -0.169 |
| 8 | DC | 11 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 8 | -1.154 |
| 9 | MI (E) | 11 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 6 | -0.585 |
| 10 | LSG (E) | 11 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 6 | -0.907 |
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