At a Glance
- Mukesh Choudhary made his IPL debut for CSK in 2022
- He picked up 16 wickets in his debut campaign
- Choudhary missed the 2023 campaign through injury, forcing him to rebuild his career since
Since its inception in 2008, the Indian Premier League has been home to fairytales aplenty. However, we’ve also seen the IPL give us stories of resilience and grit on multiple occasions. One such story is that of Chennai Super Kings pacer Mukesh Choudhary.
Choudhary first played in the IPL for CSK in the 2022 season, having served as a net bowler during the 2021 campaign. The left-arm pacer didn’t have the easiest of starts to life in the IPL, going at over 10 runs an over in each of his first two games and picking up just the one wicket across both matches.
The Wickets Start to Come for Mukesh Choudhary
After going wicketless in his debut, Choudhary would pick up at least one wicket in each of his next five matches, including a 3-19 against the Mumbai Indians at the DY Patil Stadium.
Just nine days later, he’d come away with 4-46 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad in Pune. Another three-wicket haul later, the quick would end up with 16 wickets in his debut IPL campaign for CSK.
Disaster Strikes in 2023
Having been retained ahead of the 2023 IPL Auction, Choudhary would join the Chennai Super Kings’ camp in March. However, he would then have to report to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) with a back injury.
The Super Kings would rope in fellow Indian left-arm pacer Akash Singh to replace him. The injury itself would be grave enough for Choudhary to not play any T20 cricket throughout the whole 2023 season. He would also miss Maharashtra’s 2023 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign.
Mukesh Choudhary’s Comeback Begins
Choudhary would return to IPL cricket in 2024, playing his first T20 match since the end of 2022. 27 runs conceded in his only over against eventual runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad would see the game be his only appearance of the season.
Bought back by CSK at the 2025 IPL auction at his base price of INR 30 Lakh (~£26k), Choudhary would just play the two matches that season. Going at nearly 12 an over for the solitary wicket, his exclusion from the side for the rest of the season seemed justified.
2026 would signal hope, however. Not in the CSK XI initially, Choudhary would come into the side after fellow left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed was ruled out. The campaign would not be an easy ride by any stretch of imagination though, on the field or off it.
His mother’s passing on 21 April would see him leave the team briefly to attend her last rites. Most men would have chosen to take a break after going through a personal tragedy like that. But Choudhary is unlike most men, making his way back to the side just two days later. He would go on to dismiss Quinton de Kock of the Mumbai Indians in that game, dedicating the wicket to his mother.
One could argue about his numbers and whether he is the player that the Super Kings need in their pursuit of a playoffs spot in the ongoing IPL, but his resilience, grit and commitment to his craft is beyond all question.
So far this campaign, Choudhary has picked up four wickets in five games, picking up important scalps in wins against Mumbai and Delhi. Just how well he does in the rest of this season remains to be seen. But one thing you can be sure of is Choudhary running in to give his best whenever he gets the opportunity to do so.
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