Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni feels that his team was once again a few runs short while batting first against Punjab Kings as they lost their fifth match in a row at home.

Things have not gone well for CSK at their fortress Chepauk, as it seems like they are not well equipped to take advantage of the home conditions on offer. They also became the first team to get knocked out of the playoffs race.

Asked to bat first, CSK were all out for 190 after the lower-middle order crumbled in the death overs and couldn't even play the 20 overs. Sam Curran was the standout performer with that bat and scored 88 runs off 47 balls but CSK failed to finish the innings on high as they lost five wickets in the last two overs.

Dhoni was critical of the batters for not putting up a par score on a surface where the ball was coming nicely on the bat.

"I think the batting - yes, it was the first time we put enough runs on the board. But was it a par score? I feel slightly short. Yes, a bit demanding from the batters but I feel we could've got slightly more," Dhoni said after the match.

He admitted that losing four wickets in the penultimate over, where Yuzvendra Chahal claimed a hat-trick, took the momentum away from us while batting.

"The partnership between Brevis and Sam was excellent. We didn't play the last four deliveries, and the second last over four batters got out. In close games, those 7 deliveries mean a lot," he added.

The home team skipper also admitted they also need to put up a better show on the field to put pressure on the opposition by grabbing catches.

"I feel we need to take our catches," he added.

Sam Curran is a fighter: Dhoni

Talking about the positives, Dhoni heaped praise on Curran for putting up an excellent batting performance which was laced with 9 fours and 4 sixes.

"Well he's a fighter (Curran). That's something we all know. Whenever he turns up he wants to contribute. Unfortunately, so far, whenever we tried to give him a chance, the wicket was on the slower side and he found it slightly difficult. But today's wicket was one of the best we've got at home in this tournament. That's the reason I felt we needed another 15 runs," he said.

The legendary skipper was also impressed with their new recruit Dewald Brevis for his batting prowess and positive energy on the field,

"It's the momentum in the middle order (Brevis offers). He's also a very good fielder, he has power and he can hit good balls for boundaries. And he brings good energy. Happy with the way he's playing. He can be an asset going ahead," he concluded."It's the momentum in the middle order (Brevis offers). He's also a very good fielder, he has power and he can hit good balls for boundaries. And he brings good energy. Happy with the way he's playing. He can be an asset going ahead," he concluded.