3 reasons why Matthew Short could be a dark horse for CSK in IPL 2026

Australia all-rounder Matthew Short found a new home in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) secured his services for his base price in the 2026 Auction in Abu Dhabi, on Tuesday, December 16.

He last played in the league in 2023, when he represented the Punjab Kings (PBKS). Featuring in the top-order, he scored 117 runs in six matches at an average of 19.50 and a strike rate of 127.17.

A spin bowling all-rounder and a finisher were high on CSK's shopping list for the auction, and their options were curtailed once the seasoned pair of Glenn Maxwell and Andre Russell bowed out after the player retentions were announced. Their next bets were Liam Livingstone and Michael Bracewell, but they took the left-field route and snapped up Matt Short for his base price.

On that note, let us take a look at three reasons why Matthew Short could be a dark horse for CSK in IPL 2026.

#1 Can give handy overs against the left-handers

With a spin ensemble of Akeal Hosein, Noor Ahmad, Rahul Chahar, Shreyas Gopal, and Prashant Veer, CSK do not have a finger spinner that can take the ball away from the left-handers. In such cases, Matt Short can come into play as a match-up with his handy off-spin bowling in the middle overs in particular.

Matt Short has an economy of just 6.55 against left-handed batters in his T20 career, and an average of 18.34. His ability to bowl stump-to-stump, cramp the batters up, makes him a handy defensive option, something that the likes of Noor Ahmad can take advantage of from the other end.

In IPL 2025, CSK were often undone by left-handed batters like Devdutt Padikkal, Nitish Rana, and Sunil Narine, among others, as they could not contain them in the powerplay or the middle overs, which hurt CSK's chances in a massive way. The lack of a Plan B against the left-handed batters amid Ravichandran Ashwin's poor form was evident from the early stages of the campaign, and Matt Short could prove to be the handy fix that the team can introduce without compromising their balance.

#2 A universal backup option and a potential starter given his versatility and wide range

In Matt Short, CSK have availed a candidate who can function in nearly all of the roles, especially from a batting point of view. Starting off as an opener and a top-order batter, the Australian has a strong game against pace, and is capable of maximising the powerplay. As a result, he is a solid backup for CSK's top three should things go wrong.

In recent times, he has also been functioning in a lower middle-order role, which augurs CSK even better. If he is able to play the role of a finisher and chip in with overs with his spin bowling, CSK have plugged one of the biggest holes in their playing XI.

In a way, he is a backup for every player in the top seven of CSK's playing XI. He can even feature as a starter in the lower middle-order, if they are satisfied with Dewald Brevis, Noor Ahmed, and either one of Akeal Hosein or Nathan Ellis as their overseas options, and entrust their Indian pace core. In that case, Short can certainly come in as the all-rounder to provide balance instead of Jamie Overton

#3 Brings healthy competition into play

An underrated aspect of CSK's squad last season was their unimpressive bench strength compared to other sides. A combination of their policy to stick with their trusted combination and the lack of options on the sidelines meant that they had to endure a lot of humblings, before they could mix things up.

While CSK axed the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin, Devon Conway, Rahul Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, Vijay Shankar, Jamie Overton from their team eventually, they did not necessarily have proficient players on the bench to come in and make an impact. They eventually had to rely on injury replacements for that.

However, with inclusions such as Matt Short among others, CSK have an opportunity to make a much better playing XI and a bench. Since there is not much to separate the overseas players, barring the obvious star players, the team need not worry about a drop in quality if they decide to switch things up.

If a player like Matt Short, who is a certified modern-day T20 player, can't find a place in the first team, it will certainly leave the players in the playing XI on their toes. Such a dynamic is not what CSK have usually gone with, but in their new era, they might as well embrace this aspect as well.