“Well it does hurt. What you need to see is what is going wrong, this year hasn’t been our year. In only one or two games this year we have batted and bowled well together. Whether you lose by ten wickets or eight wickets it hardly matters. All the players are hurting, but they are trying their best. It doesn’t always go your way,” MS Dhoni said, adding that all Chennai have to play for is pride in the next three fixtures.

However, mathematics show that Dhoni might be a little wrong, or a little less correct here. The Yellow army still stand a chance to sneak into the playoff window if the business end of the tournament plays their way.

Some mandatories for Chennai to reach the top four are:

1) Win all games, one with a big margin

Chennai Super Kings will play Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab in their next fixtures. Two of those games coming at the Dubai International Stadium, the only stadium that Chennai have won games at is a positive to start. However, winning alll those games is a must for the three time champions because one hiccup in can end all possibilities of them seeing the face of the eliminator match. Their net run rate also needs some immediate boosting, after it dived deep into the negative post a 10 wicket loss to Mumbai. Hence not only consecutive wins, but good margins are necessary to see CSK through.

2) Delhi, Mumbai dominate, Royal Challengers Bangalore defeat Sunrisers Hyderabad

Sitting at the top two rungs of the points table, Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals are beyond Chennai Super Kings reach. For CSK to manage a fourth rung finish, Delhi and Mumbai who already occupy the first two will have to dominate their respective fixtures. Royal Challengers Bangalore winning all their matches except the one against Chennai will also help Dhoni make a fair case.

3) Kolkata Knight Riders losing all games, Rajasthan winning only against Kolkata

If Eoin Morgan and company manage to win even one game out of the three they still have to play, Kolkata move to 14 points, which is an impossible for Chennai at the moment. However, Rajasthan winning only once, against Kolkata is a favorable scenario for Stephen Fleming’s team.

4) Kings XI Punjab defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad and then losing the rest

Hyderabad who will play Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings post their Saturday game against Kings XI Punjab will have to lose all of these games for making a likely qualification for Chennai. Kings XI Punjab on the other hand, will have to defeat Rajasthan and then lose to Chennai.

In the end, if everything goes the Chepauk way, Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals will block the first two rungs with 18-22 points, followed by Royal Challengers Bangalore at 14-16 points and then Kolkata/Punjab at a tie 12 points with Chennai Super Kings. MS Dhoni and company will have to keep their net run rate high in any case.