MS Dhoni drew severe flak in the preceding edition of the Indian Premier League as Chennai Super Kings failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in the glittering antiquity of the tournament. However, the problem seemed much more deep-rooted than just being the dearth of quality youngsters which was cited by Dhoni.
The primary reasons that led to CSK’s downfall were over-reliability on old horses that included the likes of Dhoni himself and an overused Shane Watson. They also didn’t bother to utilise the talented Mitch Santner and an experienced Imran Tahir for some alien reasons.
To make matters worse, players like Josh Hazelwood and Lungi Ngidi went unused in most of the occasions wherein they could have crafted a significant impact on the fortunes of CSK with the tracks of UAE being extremely rewarding for fast bowlers.
Another glaring concern for the Kings was an evident dearth of fitness that sparked several injuries and also a woeful display in the field. All of them constituted in sizeable proportions to oust the Yellow army from IPL even before they could take flight.
Today we will three reasons that why Chennai remains to be one of the teams that can manage to walk away with the crown in 2021.
The return of Suresh Raina
The absence of Suresh Raina from the Chennai roster led to a significant impact in the batting and fielding ranks. The ever-smiling southpaw held an extremely crucial position in the Chennai ranks. His presence in the number three spot of the team helped the outfit to make a successful transition from the opening to the middle-order without the imposition of immense pressure. However, with him plugging out of the last year’s tournament in the dying embers, Chennai really didn’t have many options to navigate themselves. With the return of Chennai’s Mr Dependable, the team will be able to wield a lot more balance in the middle-order and will be able to produce a smooth transition from the middle overs to the slog overs without plucking a stressful string or two.
A strong bowling line-up
As the party returns to India, Chennai will be looking forward to deploying the duo of Josh Hazelwood and Lungi Ngidi who can manifest handsome returns for the management. As the surfaces in the sub-continent are hard and will beget considerable bounce, it can be quite a paradise for such renowned express trains of the sport. Chennai will also have the likes of Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo and Shardul Thakur who can mix medium pace and spin in equal proportions to hurt the other teams. One of the major x-factors for Chennai will be the lean and lissome Englishman, Moeen Ali. Given the dynamics of his batting and bowling, he will bring in a boatload of experience and an industrious mix to the squad that will allow Dhoni to field an additional Indian batsman.
The duo of Bravo and Jadeja
No matter how much you write Chennai Super Kings off, this duo is an absolute game-changer. Jadeja has evolved himself into an indispensable part of any outfit that he plays for. Bravo’s batting has declined significantly over the years but the miserly bowling that he manages to belt under the cosh in the slog overs is impeccable. This duo can save countless runs with their excellent efforts in the field, can wriggle crucial scalps whenever needed and most importantly can add at least 40-50 odd runs towards the end of the innings at quite a breezy rate. The current crop of players that Chennai has managed to board will have life a lot easier because of this decorated duo who will spark hopes for the Chennai Super Kings fans.
