Despite finishing 10th in IPL 2025 and 8th in 2026, CSK have no plans to change their head coach. Cricbuzz confirmed Fleming’s year-on-year contract will be renewed for IPL 2027, with the franchise showing no appetite for a coaching change after two difficult seasons in a row. The field leadership question is a different matter entirely. Who captains the side in 2027 remains unresolved, with Ruturaj Gaikwad’s two-year record leaving the franchise a real decision to make.
Fleming’s Contract Renewal Explained
Fleming has been a constant at CSK since 2008, first as a player and then as head coach from 2009. He’s overseen all five IPL title wins: 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, and 2023. Making him the longest-serving and most decorated coach in the franchise’s history. No other IPL head coach has been with one franchise for that length of time and delivered at that level.
CSK’s post-season review of IPL 2026 will happen after the Major League Cricket 2026 season wraps up. Fleming will be part of those discussions, but Cricbuzz’s reporting is specific on one point: his own contract isn’t under review. The coaching setup stays. What CSK needs to sort out is who holds the leadership on the field, and that conversation won’t happen until MLC 2026 concludes. The sequencing matters because Fleming’s involvement in the review will shape whoever the franchise eventually backs.
Gaikwad’s Numbers Tell a Hard Story
CSK finished 8th in IPL 2026 with six wins and eight losses from 14 matches, collecting 12 points at an NRR of −0.345. Gaikwad contributed 321 runs at an average of 29.18 and a strike rate of 120.68, but his overall captaincy record across both of his seasons at the helm now reads 14 wins and 18 losses from 32 matches, per CREX.
The low point came when CSK lost seven straight matches in IPL 2026 under his captaincy, equalling Virat Kohli’s and Yuvraj Singh’s record for the most consecutive defeats by an IPL captain. That kind of run doesn’t get explained away in a review meeting. It becomes the starting point of one.
| Season | Matches | Wins | Losses |
| IPL 2024 | 18 | 8 | 10 |
| IPL 2026 | 14 | 6 | 8 |
| Total | 32 | 14 | 18 |
The table tells the full story of Gaikwad’s captaincy tenure. Across two seasons, CSK never finished above mid-table. For a franchise with five titles and a culture built around winning, that record demands a serious answer.
Samson, Kamboj, and What the Numbers Mean
The internal debate reportedly centres on Sanju Samson, who was CSK’s top run-scorer in IPL 2026 with 477 runs. That kind of output from a player already embedded in the side gives the franchise something concrete to consider. If the captaincy moves, Samson is the name being discussed, though CSK has made no decision and issued no statement.
Anshul Kamboj’s 21 wickets led CSK’s bowling attack in IPL 2026. The campaign was not without bright spots. Samson provided consistent runs throughout the season, finishing on 477, while Kamboj emerged as a major wicket-taking threat with 21 dismissals. What the team lacked was consistent captaincy decision-making that converted those individual performances into results.
No official CSK or BCCI statement on the 2027 captaincy exists as of now. The last confirmed communication came in November 2025, when the franchise named Gaikwad as captain for IPL 2026 only. That wording was deliberate, and in hindsight, it reads like a one-season trial with no guarantees attached.
Stephen Fleming CSK IPL 2027 Head Coach Contract
Fleming’s continuation removes one major variable from CSK’s planning. He’s navigated franchise rebuilds before and delivered titles on the other side. Whoever gets the captaincy for 2027 inherits a setup with proven coaching continuity at the top, which is not a small thing in a franchise competition where staff turnover can disrupt an entire squad cycle. The captain may change. The coaching philosophy won’t.
The timing of the announcement depends on MLC 2026 finishing first. Only after that review wraps up will CSK begin formalising their 2027 structure. Any confirmation of the Stephen Fleming CSK IPL 2027 head coach contract and the accompanying captaincy decision will most likely come as part of that same announcement window later this year.