Chennai Super Kings' Deepak Chahar Likely to Miss Big Chunk of IPL 2022: Report

CSK signed up Deepak Chahar for INR 14 crore in the IPL Auction in February.

Deepak Chahar walking off at Eden Gardens after getting injured during his second over against WI in the 3rd T20I

Image: BCCI

In what is a big blow to the Chennai Super Kings, Deepak Chahar is set to miss a major chunk of IPL 2022. Chahar had been re-signed by CSK in the 2022 IPL Auction for 14 crore.

According a Cricinfo report, Chahar will miss the major part of IPL 2022, and may miss the whole tournament too, as he has suffered a quadricep tear in the third T20I against West Indies. The injury is likely to take several days to heal. Chahar pulled up in his second over in the game and walked off unable to complete the over at the Eden Gardens.

The IPL this season with two new teams will be played from 26 March to 29 May.

CSK are reportedly awaiting further details on Chahar’s condition from the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru where he is undergoing rehab. The 29-year-old was the second most expensive buy at the 2022 IPL Auction and was one of the most sought-after players. Among the teams interested were Delhi, Hyderabad and Rajasthan before Chennai won the bidding war.

The bowling all-rounder has been in good form and in his last 3 ODIs showed his batting exploits with match-turning knocks of 69* (vs Sri Lanka), 54 (vs South Africa) and 38 (vs West Indies).

Chahar had been part of CSK since 2018 but was not retained ahead of the auction. His first stint in the IPL was with Rising Pune Super Giant in 2016 as an uncapped bowler.

In the 2018 mega auction, CSK signed him up for INR 80 lakhs and it would prove to be a great pick as Chahar was the lead bowler with 58 wickets from 58 games. 42 of those scalps came in the powerplay (first six overs), which is 15 more than the next best that is New Zealand’s Trent Boult with 27 - across these four seasons.