IPL 2025 Has Been Different — Here Is Why I Keep Watching Even Non-CSK Games

I told you I only really watch IPL when CSK plays. That is still mostly true. But IPL 2025 has done something that the last few seasons failed to do — it has made me watch matches that have nothing to do with Chennai. That is the highest compliment I can give a cricket tournament as someone with specific loyalties.

What Makes This Season Different

The number of last-over finishes this season has been extraordinary. Match after match has been decided in the final few deliveries, with the result genuinely uncertain until the last moment. In recent IPL seasons, certain teams from certain positions against certain opponents felt predictable before the final overs. This season has not felt that way at all — and that genuine uncertainty is what has kept pulling me back.

The young Indian players who have emerged this season are also a big part of the story. Several players who were barely known outside their home states six weeks ago have announced themselves in ways that will shape Indian cricket for years. Watching that kind of emergence happen in real time — under maximum IPL pressure, on the biggest stages — is one of the things cricket does better than any other sport.

CSK in 2025 — My Honest Assessment

As a CSK fan I want to tell you they have been brilliant all season. The honest truth is more complicated. They have had moments of real quality and moments that have frustrated me deeply. The batting has been more reliable than the bowling in patches. But the one thing that has remained consistent is their ability to win close matches — and in T20 cricket, that quality covers a lot of other weaknesses.

IPL at its best reminds you why cricket is different from every other sport. No other game manages to be simultaneously strategic and explosive, individual and team-dependent, predictable and surprising, all within the same three hours.

The Moments I Will Remember

There have been several moments in IPL 2025 that I will be describing to people years from now. Last-ball sixes that seemed impossible. Bowling spells that completely changed the psychological momentum of a match in a single over. Young players making decisions under pressure that seasoned veterans would have been proud of. The collection of moments from this season is genuinely special.

Watching It on Hotstar

I watch most IPL matches on Hotstar when I cannot watch on Star Sports. The streaming quality has improved significantly this season and the commentary options — being able to switch between different commentary teams and languages — is genuinely useful. For anyone watching on a phone during commutes or late at night when the television is occupied, the app experience has been good enough that it does not feel like a compromise.