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Mhatre has been one of CSK's better best batter this season and was the leading run scorer for the franchise after six games. The top order will be considerably weaker in Mhatre's absence and the team will be forced to find a replacement as soon as possible. CSK has some good options available from the player market who could potentially fill in for the talented young Indian batter.

Mayank Agarwal is the most experienced on the list of available players and possesses more than a decade of IPL experience. He is a right-handed batter and has amassed over 2756 runs in 131 IPL games including a ton and 13 half centuries. Agarwal would provide a much needed sense of stability at the top of the order, a position that has become precarious after the news regarding Mhatre.

He is also in good form in domestic cricket after he piled on 678 runs at a healthy average of 42.37 in this year's Ranji trophy season. The 35-year old joined the Royal Challengers Bangalore as an injury replacement last season and scored 95 runs from 4 matches. The experience and ability to play long innings are a strong point in his favour.

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CSK can also consider Yash Dhull, a good candidate for the spot. Last season the batter was on top form in the domestic circuits. In 8 matches, he scored 435 runs with a strike rate of 167.31. In the Delhi Premier League and followed up with 434 runs in 5 Ranji Trophy matches.

The 23-year-old is a good all-round batter as he can build his innings with ease without affecting the strike rate. Dhull was surprisingly not picked in IPL 2026 auction at his base price of Rs 30 lakhs and could be a good prospect for the Chennai based franchise for a long term plan.

Another good prospect who could be looked for is Anmolpreet Singh. He was in great form in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he scored 349 runs in 10 matches at a strike rate of 175.37. The aggressive batter can help CSK to score at a higher rate in the powerplay as well as suited to the T20 format.

Anmolpreet has some IPL experience playing for the Mumbai Indians franchise and his power-hitting can provide the Chennai based team with a good top-order prospect.

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CSK could also give chances to the 21-year-old fearless batter Swastik Chikara who could be a good option for the role occupied by Mhatre. Chikara is known for his aggressive style of play, and ability to smash boundaries in the powerplay. The batter is yet to get chances in the IPL with both Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Delhi Capitals previously having the batter in their squad.

The youngster has a history of smashing the bowlers early in the innings in domestic cricket and could be a like to like replacement in terms of his intent.

The other youthful option is Tushar Raheja who fits the role of a wicketkeeper-batter particularly well. He performed exceptionally well in the Tamil Nadu Premier League and also has good form in T20s. He has scored 223 runs at an incredible 165.18 strike rate in nine T20s.

Although he is quite new at this level, his attacking instincts coupled with the ability to score quickfire innings could prove to be effective for CSK, if they are to experiment with a fresh face.

CSK will now have an important decision to make, with a top performer in the team needing to be replaced. Experience or current form - what will be the more prominent factor for CSK in the final choice?