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Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is torn between picking either Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) or Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as outright favourites ahead of their clash in the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday, April 5.

There are several reasons why RCB would start as favourites against their rivals on Sunday. Not only are Rajat Patidar’s side defending champions, but they have also beaten CSK in their last three meetings. The five-time champions, on the other hand, come into the game on the back of two consecutive defeats, losing to the Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati and the Punjab Kings at home. 

Despite the contrasting fortunes, Ashwin is still not completely ruling out his former franchise against the might of RCBand not calling them favourites to take home the two points. 

"I would never call them overwhelming favorites. My heart always beats a bit yellow. I don't have any shame in that. In this game, my heart is saying CSK, but my brain is saying RCB," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

After losing their opening game to RR in convincing fashion, CSK replaced their overseas players, Matthew Short and Jamie Overton, with Prashant Veer and Rahul Chahar. This was despite the England all-rounder’s 43 that took CSK to 127 in the first place. Ashwin clearly stated his displeasure about making wholesale changes after just one defeat.

"What can I say? In the first game, I am saying this from a coach's point of view, CSK were all out for 127 against RR. It was overcast conditions, the pitch was under covers, and all that, and you went with this combination. It was an aberration. All of this happens in T20 cricket. But if you make so many changes for the next game because of it, like Matt Short and Jamie Overton were replaced by Prashant Veer and Rahul Chahar. If you make 2 changes after just one loss, how many changes will you make after two back-to-back losses?" he added.

As things stand, CSKfind themselves at the foot of the standings, having lost both of their opening two games. They will need to bounce back quickly to give themselves the platform to qualify for the playoffs after missing out on the top four in 2024 and 2025.