IPL 2020: Are CSK sorely missing Harbhajan Singh and Suresh Raina?
Prior to the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020), the three-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) were dealt with a couple of body blows after their key players Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh backed out of the tournament, citing ‘personal reasons’. Though the absence of Raina and Harbhajan left a huge gap in the Super Kings squad for this year’s tournament, the team didn’t name any replacement.
The franchise is definitely bothered with the absence of two veteran players as they don’t seem to have enough depth in their squad to deal with these major blows. The MS Dhoni-led side has been below average in their performance in the tournament so far. They have won only two of their opening six matches, losing all their in an unconvincing fashion.
At present, the team is struggling to string together victories consistently. After clinching their first match against Mumbai Indians, the team had to deal with three consecutive heartbreaking losses against Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad. This has been the first time since 2014 that Yellow Army has lost their three consecutive matches in the T20 extravaganza.
Current issues
More than Harbhajan Singh, Chennai and its fans are missing the presence of Suresh Raina fondly known as Mr. IPL. Without Raina, the batting-order looks ordinary and vulnerable. Raina has been a vital cog in CSK’s successful stint in the IPL as he has collected 5368 runs in 193 matches played since the start of the tournament in 2008, the most by any player in the history of the league after Virat Kohli.
The top-order of CSK that includes Shane Watson, Murali Vijay and Kedar Jadhav looks out of touch and has not made any significant contribution. Though Faf du Plessis has been good in the tournament so far, it is not enough for the team as in their last two outings they couldn’t chase a decent total of 175 and 164 in the 20-overs game against DC and SRH respectively.
Though CSK’s bowling order looks in good shape, the presence of wicket-taking spinner Harbhajan Singh would have added more depth to it. Harbhajan has been brilliant in his stint with CSK since 2018. Most of their players, including skipper MS Dhoni, have looked rusty after a long time away from the cricketing pitch due to the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. The major issue with MS Dhoni & Co. is that they are not backed with good bench strength. Thus, the captain and management can’t make any significant change in the playing XI.
Way ahead
Raina and Harbhajan had signed a three-year deal with CSK back in 2018 for INR 11 crores and INR 2 crores respectively. Though the contract was anyhow coming to an end after IPL 2020, the management had decided to terminate the contracts mid-way and had already removed the names of both cricketers from their websites. This has thus ended the possibility of any of the two veterans joining the camp mid-way.
