5 reasons why CSK are the most successful team in the IPL

7 seasons, twice champions, 3-time runners-up and semi-finalists, at the least, every single time. With 74 wins from 121 matches till now and a winning percentage of 62.08, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are the most successful IPL team by some distance. The second best in the list is Mumbai Indians, winning 55.55% of their 117 matches;. Then, there are a string of teams close to each other, with Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab winning 54.50%, 52.29% and 50.89% of their matches respectively.Winning percentage of IPL teams (all seasons)TeamMatchesWonLostWinning %Chennai Super Kings121744562.08Decann Chargers75294638.66Delhi Daredevils111476243.18Kings XI Punjab112565450.89Kochi Tuskers Kerela146842.85Kolkata Knight Riders109565152.29Mumbai Indians117655255.55Pune Warriors46123326.66Rajasthan Royals111594954.50Royal Challengers Bangalore113545649.10Sunrisers Hyderabad37171947.29What, then, makes CSK the most successful team in the IPL? Here, we look at 5 reasons why they have been the standout team across seasons.

#1 Consistency in the squad

While there’s no single answer to this question, probably the most important factor behind their success is the consistency in the look of the team. When the IPL started back in 2008, the teams were to have the same squads with a few additions for 3 years i.e. till 2010. CSK had done really well in those 3 seasons, reaching the final in 2008 while winning it in 2010. When fresh auctions were held for the 2011 season where every team could retain a maximum of 4 players, CSK retained their core group of players – MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Murali Vijay and Albie Morkel.

By 2010, Ashwin, and Badrinath had become key players for them and they somehow managed to buy them back at the auctions too. Similarly, after 6 seasons, when another round of fresh auctions were held, CSK retained 5 of their core players – Dhoni, Raina, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo, and in the auctions, they managed to get back Mike Hussey and Faf du Plessis – that’s 7 out of their starting XI!

Chennai are also the only team who have had only one captain for all 8 seasons till now. The only 3 matches when Dhoni did not captain the side was when he was out injured and Raina took over the reins seamlessly.