3 Players CSK Can Target At IPL 2020 Auction To Strengthen Their Squad: Chennai Super Kings are without any doubt the most consistent team in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). In the 2019 edition of IPL, CSK were once again brilliant and fell short of winning the trophy for a fourth time by a very narrow margin. When CSK returned to the IPL in 2018, their auction strategy surprised everyone as they went after players well past their best and some such as Rayudu who were thought to be not suited for the shortest format. In spite of not starting as favorites, they went on to dominate and win the trophy with almost every player contributing something to the team’s cause.
In 2019 too, the same doubts about the age and fitness of the squad lingered over CSK’s title defense after another disappointing performance in the IPL auction. But they went on to reach the finals by having immense belief in their experienced campaigners. Compared to the last two auctions CSK are expected to be more pro-active this time since Shane Watson, MS Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh have played very little cricket after 2019 IPL, while Rayudu and Murali Vijay have disappeared off the selector’s radar. The three players who CSK must target in the IPL auction is given below.
3. Jaydev Unadkat
IPL stats
Matches: 73 Wickets:77 Average: 28.46 Economy: 8.73 Strike rate: 19.55
Deepak Chahar has been outstanding for CSK over the past two seasons but CSK lacks a viable Indian pacer to replace him in case of an injury or to play with him on tracks like Mohali which suits fast bowlers. Jaydev Unadkat is the most likely player to fill that role since he has a lot of experience in this format of the game and we all know how much CSK values experience. He leaked a lot of runs in the previous edition but did compensate by picking crucial wickets. Since he is a left-arm bowler, he naturally brings variety to the one-dimensional CSK fast bowling unit and his guile and trickery combined with the slow pitches of Chepauk can surprise any batsmen.
2. Sheldon Cottrell
T-20 stats
Matches: 83 Wickets: 117 Average: 19.08 Economy: 7.46 Strike rate: 15.3
Another left-arm speedster but unlike Unadkat he is in the midst of a purple patch and has shown his potential by constantly troubling the Indian batsmen in ongoing India vs West Indies series. He has been one of the most consistent performers in the CPL with 69 wickets at a very good economy of 7.37. He will be best suited to playing in Chepauk since he has spent his whole career by bowling in rank turners and low bouncy pitches of the Carribean Islands. He also has a brilliant off cutter which he bowls with very little change in his action.
1. Shimron Hetmyer
T-20 stats
Innings: 48 Runs:1033 Average: 22.95 Strike rate: 132.94
One of the main criticisms of CSK in the past two seasons have been their over-reliance on MS Dhoni if the top order fails to make an impact. Raina looks like a shadow of his past while Jadhav has been too inconsistent and injury prone. They need firepower in the middle order and there are not many better hitters than Hetmyer available in the IPL auction. Chepauk is a spinner’s forte and most IPL teams have a legspinner as a key player in their team. This is where Shimron Hetmyer’s incredible record against the leggies will be invaluable for CSK, since he can dent the confidence of a legspinner by constantly attacking the flighted deliveries. He also scored a magnificent century in Cheapuk against India to help his team chase 288 on a typical Chepauk wicket and hence he will surely be the person to watch out for in the auction.
