Today the Chennai Super Kings suffered a body blow as Suresh Raina decided to withdraw from the upcoming season. Owing to personal reasons the mainstay of CSK’s batting has immediately decided to return to India. Now, this has left the CSK franchise is in a fix as they will now have to find a quick replacement for Raina for IPL 2020.
Meanwhile, everyone was amazed as no one predicted that Raina will no longer part of the much anticipated IPL season. The recently retired cricketer was in the best shape of his life and eager to stamp his authority again in the UAE. However, family always comes first and the veteran batsman made the correct call by flying back to his loved ones.
Now, who will replace Raina is a million-dollar question as now CSK need to find a player they can fill the massive boots of “Mr IPL” Raina.
We look ahead at 3 possible players that might board the flight to UAE and play for CSK as a replacement for Suresh Raina:
3. Hanuma Vihari
Considering his prowess against spin bowling with the bat in hand, Hanuma Vihari can be a solid addition to the CSK set up this year. The right-handed batsman has now even got exposure of international cricket as he has been a permanent member of India’s red-ball squad in the past year. In the IPL auction, Vihari went unsold at his base price of Rs. 50 lakhs.
CSK will be eyeing Vihari as he will be at home considering the slow surfaces in the UAE. On top of that, he can also bowl handy off-spinners which will surely attract skipper MS Dhoni.
So far Vihari is his IPL career hasn’t set the world on fire as he only scored 284 runs at a strike rate of under 100. However, the batsman now understands his strengths and weaknesses which will allow him to perform better in the biggest T20 league in the world.
2. Yusuf Pathan
Another player that CSK looks towards is the seasoned Yusuf Pathan. Over the year we have seen him destroy best bowling attacks and clear the boundary at will. There’s no denying that Yusuf is beyond his prime but if there is any side that banks on experience in the IPL it’s the Chennai Super Kings.
Pathan surprisingly in the IPL auction remained unsold at his base price of Rs. 1 crore. On his day he can still prove to be a match-winner as he is capable of scoring against spinners which will be prominent in the upcoming IPL season.
MS Dhoni can also get away with 2-3 cheap overs from him as he is not the worst part-time bowler. The 37-year-old so far in his 174 IPL matches has scored 3204 at an impressive average of 143.
1. Manoj Tiwary
Fans of the yellow army could also potentially see Manoj Tiwary play for their franchise in IPL 2020. The former IPL champion went unsold in the IPL auction for his base price for Rs. 50 lakhs.
Tiwary in the last few months has several times stated that he is still motivated to play the IPL and win matches for his side. This could turn to out to be a blessing in disguise for him as he is no stranger to the big stage of IPL.
Additionally, Tiwary too will add experience to the CSK setup and his versatility against slow bowlers makes him a prime contender to replace Suresh Raina. The 34-year-old in his IPL career has played 98 matches in which he has amassed 1695 runs at a strike rate of 117 including 7 half-centuries.