CHENNAI: As Chennai Super Kings finished off a forgettable season in this year’s IPL, ending up in the penultimate place in the points table, all was not lost for them looking ahead to the future. Not at least for some of the players in the squad, including Dwaine Pretorius.
The South African all-rounder, after making his mark as a death over specialist of sorts in the T20 World Cup last year, was bagged by the four-time champions at the auction for Rs 50 lakhs. He got to play in six games and took as many wickets, continuing the role he played for his country in the World Cup.
With the Proteas side preparing for the five-match T20I series against India which kicks off in Delhi on Thursday, the 33-year-old said that his debut season in the IPL was a great learning experience. “I call it one of my bucket list items,” said Pretorius during a media interaction on Monday.
“I am very very glad that I got an opportunity to play for Chennai Super Kings, one of the most successful franchises ever in the IPL.” Speaking about the CSK setup, the all-rounder said that the franchise helps a player develop on their own. “It’s got a very performance-based setup,” he said, adding, “you get a lot of responsibility yourself as a player. You prepare like you want to, come up with a plan that you believe will work and then make sure you actually execute your plans.”
Despite the off season the franchise had, Pretorius believes that both the team and the players just want to look at the positives and build on them for the future. “I think what is nice about the franchise and the whole set up is that it is very experienced. I think we all understand that cricket doesn’t always go your way. It is all about trying and building for the next or the third year, trying to make sure that a so-called bad season is not a complete loss.”