Ahead of the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League, Chennai Super Kings were struck with two major blows after two of their most experienced players — Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh, pulled out from the league. Both the players cited personal reasons while pulling out of the league. Now CSK’s all-rounder Shane Watson has come up with a replacement for Suresh Raina.
Recently, during an interaction on a YouTube show hosted by Quetta Gladiators’ head of player acquisitions, Nabeel Hashmi, Shane Watson talked about the impact of Harbhajan Singh and Suresh Raina’s absence in the team. He said:
“We have to (deal with the absence of Raina, Harbhajan). The great thing with CSK, as with all IPL squads, they have a lot of depth. It’s going to be incredibly hard to replace Suresh Raina. You can’t. He scored the second-most runs in the IPL, played the most games in IPL history. He has got records left, right and centre,”
Furthermore, Shane Watson said though it’s a big loss to not have Suresh Raina in the upcoming season but his absence can give an opportunity to Murali Vijay.
Murali Vijay, who was sitting on the sidelines for most of the season last year, has only played three games for CSK in the past two seasons, where he scored 76 runs. As per Shane Watson, Suresh Raina’s withdrawal might turn out as a blessing in disguise for Murali Vijay, who was once a part of the vital cog of CSK set-up. He said:
“He is going to be hugely missed, knowing the conditions in the UAE is hot, more chances of wickets being drier and turning a bit more. Raina plays spin incredibly well as well,”
Shane Watson also talked about Piyush Chawla, who will be delivering with the ball in CSK, in the absence of Harbhajan Singh. Backing Piyush Chawla for IPL 2020, Shane Watson said:
“Harbhajan, of course, has done incredibly well for CSK in the last couple of years. But again, on the other side, there is going to be opportunities for someone like Piyush Chawla who has come over from the Knight Riders. Of course, their experience and quality is going to be missed but you have got to make the most of the situation,”
Meanwhile, the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League will kickstart from September 19th in UAE, with the opening clash between Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.
