CHENNAI: THE Chennai Super Kings side led by MS Dhoni is training hard in Mumbai in preparation for the 14th edition of the IPL, beginning on Friday. CSK had a forgettable season last year, failing to qualify for the playoffs for the first time.
Since then, the Stephen Fleming-coached side have made a few changes. After releasing the likes of Harbhajan Singh, Kedar Jadhav, Murali Vijay and Piyush Chawla, they have brought in Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali and K Gowtham. The presence of Suresh Raina could also bolster the batting unit.
All three of Ali, Uthappa and Raina could play a vitoral role this season, according to N Jagadeesan, who made his debut for the franchise last year. There is a reason behind that belief as CSK’s batting came up a cropper on multiple occasions last year. “We have a good balanced side that ticks all the boxes. We are keen to perform well this season. We have the right mixture of batters, bowlers and all-rounders and so we are in a positive frame of mind,’’ said N Jagadeesan who made his debut for CSK last season.
“Raina is a proven performer and has a lot of experience playing the IPL. He being around this time augurs well for the side. Uthappa is a top order batsman with loads of experience. In a tournament like tjhe IPL, experience counts and its good to have people with experience in our ranks,’’ said Jagadeesan. “All-rounders are very important for a side as they provide the edge for a team in a close game. The presence of Moeen and Gowtham is a big plus and augurs well.The right-hander was is good form for TN in the Syed Mushtaq Ali meet which they won. So Jagadeesan himself could contribute.