Chennai Super Kings’ fans were left heartbroken after veteran cricketer Suresh Raina went unsold during the two-day IPL auction 2022. It came out as a huge surprise to everyone, considering that Raina is hailed as a legend in the Indian Premier League and is known for his splendid performances for Chennai Super Kings over the years.
The 2011 World Cup winner has been more like a backbone of the Chennai-based team ever since its inception in 2008. Suresh Raina has played for CSK from 2018 to 2021 and is also the fourth-highest run-scorer in IPL history with 5,528 runs from 205 games. In his career for Chennai Super Kings, Raina has registered 4,687 runs for CSK.
Last year, during the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League, he was dropped for Robin Uthappa and it looked like his race was run. This auction was a confirmation that Chennai Super Kings has moved on from him.
Meanwhile, speaking to The Indian Express, CEO Kasi Viswanath explained why the franchise didn’t pick Suresh Raina in the IPL 2022 mega-auction. He said:
“Raina has been one of the most consistent performers for CSK for the last 12 years. Of course, it was very difficult for us, not to have Raina but at the same time, you should also understand that the team composition depends on the form and kind of team which any team would like to have”,
He added: “So that’s one of the reasons why we thought he may not fit into this team,”
The CSK CEO also seemed a bit disappointed for not being able to get back Faf du Plessis in the squad. Faf du Plessis played a key role last season as MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings won the title. Faf has been bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 7 crore. Talking about the same, Kasi Viswanath said:
“We will miss him, we will miss Faf who has been with us for the last decade, that’s the process and dynamics of the auction”
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