Things were looking great for Punjab Kings before they fell face-first in their last game against Rajasthan Royals in Mullanpur, their home ground. Does that then make them vulnerable when they take on Chennai Super Kings at the same venue on Tuesday?

The answer is ‘no’. That’s because CSK are in a deeper pit and the onus on Ruturaj Gaikwad’s team to get a win is much bigger than it is on Shreyas Iyer’s Punjab. CSK have just one win to show from four games, Punjab have two from three.

What exactly is CSK’s problem? Well, everything. Their batters aren’t scoring runs, the bowlers are not in rhythm, the foreign recruits haven’t brought their best game out and then there is the Mahendra Singh Dhoni issue. It would be unfair to call Dhoni a problem for CSK, not when the season for them is just four matches old. But at the
same time, denying that there’s an issue about the relevance of Dhoni’s presence
in the CSK XI will also be not correct.

For starters, CSK, one feels, should get skipper Gaikwad to bat at his tried-and-tested position of an opener. Gaikwad has been batting at No. 3 this season and doesn’t look much comfortable there.

Then they will have to pray that the big names on their roster do justice to their reputation. For example, Shivam Dube, their middle-order muscleman, averages just 16 after batting in four innings.

Strike rate has also been an issue for the Chennai side, with only Gaikwad having a 150-plus scoring rate to show. While big hitting is not the only way to get runs in T20s, the absence of it is also not recommended.

Their bowling has been better. Afghan left-arm wrist spinner Noor Ahmad has been the star with 10 wickets, while left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed has also been among wickets. They will, however, want more impact-making performances from senior spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, and from Sri Lankan slinger Matheesha Pathirana.

Dhoni? It is difficult to say anything on that subject. Seems even CSK do not know how best to use their ‘Thala’.

Punjab will have no worries of those proportions. They lost the last game, but they haven’t been doing too badly in all departments of the game. Skipper Shreyas is in rousing form and averages an insane 159 after three matches. Young Nehal Wadhera too has been getting runs.

In bowling, there has been no standout performer, but Arshdeep Singh has looked accurate, while they also have Lockie Ferguson’s express pace to fall back on. If leggie Yuzvendra Chahal can join the party, Punjab will have a very good attack at their disposal.

There’s one thing that might bug Punjab though. They have just one win from six matches in Mullanpur.