Subramaniam Badrinath slammed the Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) management for paying INR 14.20 crore each for uncapped Indian players Kartik Sharma and Prashant Veer at the IPL 2026 mini-auction last year.
The former CSK batter didn't mince his words during his criticism of the CSK think tank after the Men in Yellow lost two games in a row in the ongoing edition of the IPL. Kartik has played both matches and aggregated only 19 runs at a strike rate of 105.56. On the other hand, Veer played Friday's
clash against the Punjab Kings, where he contributed just six runs off seven balls and didn't get to bowl.
Badrinath wondered who had suggested to CSK to go after these two players at the auction. The former India batter said that he would be surprised to see them score runs in the matches to come, and even if they do, it would be through a fluke.
"I don't know who gave CSK the suggestion to pick these two. I will be surprised if they score runs. Even if they do, it'll be only through a fluke. I don't trust these two playing proper shots and scoring runs. I think they are tremendously overpriced," Badrinath said on his YouTube channel.
"I am sorry to say that both are getting exposed. By giving both over 14 crores, CSK made a massive blunder. It was a huge gamble. If they fired, it would have been celebrated. But if they didn't fire, it would look like a very, very bad move, and that's what is happening now. When Arshdeep Singh and Bartlett were bowling, they didn't seem to have any time. Before Prashant Veer could even lift this bat, the ball was flying past him. The truth is, they've never faced this kind of bowling in their lives," he added.
'What kind of process is this?' - Badrinath
Badrinath mentioned that MS Dhoni is high on processes, but he couldn't understand the logic behind playing Veer in place of Jamie Overton, who had done relatively well in the previous game. The cricketer-turned-expert also questioned why Akeal Hosein wasn't even named in the first 15.
"MS Dhoni is always high on processes. They played two foreigners in this match. You brought in Prashant Veer for Jamie Overton, who did well in the last game. Overton bats and bowls, and you replace him with Prashant and do not give him a single over. What kind of process is this? Why did you bring Prashant Veer into the lineup? Do you think he's going to score a 20-ball 50 down the order and win you a game? It's impossible to understand their thinking," said Badrinath (via the aforementioned source).
"The auction was bad, but that ship has sailed. At least with what you have, get the processes right. You make a player who did well in the last match, Jamie Overton, sit. And then you don't bowl Prashant Veer. It's impossible to understand what CSK are doing. You didn't even name Akeal Hosein in your 15 to even try to bring him in as the Impact Sub," he concluded.
CSK will have to pull up their socks quickly, as the games are going to come thick and fast. On Sunday, they will return to action as they take on the Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
