When Chennai Super Kings arrive in Dubai for the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction, scheduled on 19 December, they will have the tag of defending champions, the joint-biggest squad and the fourth-highest purse. If you can spot a pattern from the three factors – indeed, they are well-settled as ever before, and do not need to do much.
But the drive for perfection never stops at the Lions’ den, and hence, we take a look at everything about Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team – from their current make-up to potential plans.
How Does CSK’s Squad & XI Look Now?
For the less fortunate – or should we say – less meticulous teams, it might be mildly infuriating that CSK could simply decide to skip the auction altogether and still rock up with a squad that has the potential to win the trophy. Known for their stability, they retained 19 players, with no team retaining more players than the five-time champions. They have Rs 31.40 crore to spend, and will need to fill a maximum of six slots, of which a maximum of three can be overseas recruits.
Firstly, let us have a look at the players retained by CSK:
Ajay Mandal, Ajinkya Rahane, Deepak Chahar, Devon Conway, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana, Mitchell Santner, Moeen Ali, MS Dhoni, Mukesh Choudhary, Nishant Sindhu, Prashant Solanki, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shaik Rasheed, Shivam Dube, Simarjeet Singh, Tushar Deshpande.
Now, let us have a look at the make-up of the current CSK playing XI:
In Devon Conway and Ruturaj Gaikwad, the Super Kings have an outstanding opening pair who scored 1262 runs in IPL 2023. Add Ajinkya Rahane to the mix, and we have arguably the most potent top three in the league.
Shivam Dube was efficacious with the bat last season, scoring 418 runs, while Ravindra Jadeja and Moeen Ali played some crucial cameos lower down the order.
As for their bowling composition, despite having struggled in international cricket, Matheesha Pathirana seems indispensable in the CSK squad, picking up 19 wickets last season. The same can be said about Deepak Chahar, who might only be on the periphery of the Indian team’s scheme of things, but is usually at the epicentre of Dhoni’s plans.
As for their tweakers, the pair of Ravindra Jadeja and Maheesh Theekshana can not only break partnerships, but they are usually very economical, recording economy rates of 7.56 and 8 runs per over respectively in IPL 2023.
What Should CSK Do at the IPL 2024 Auction?
For easier comprehension, let us segregate their possible strategy according to the categories of players they might be after.
Category 1: Indian Middle-Order Batter
Considering the Gaikwad-Conway-Rahane-Dube quartet did well to accumulate 2006 runs last season, a top-order batter will be surplus to requirements in Dhoni’s team. Although, they will certainly need an Indian middle-order batter to replace the reliable Ambati Rayudu – who scored 158 runs at a strike rate of 139.82 in IPL 2023, including an 8-ball 19 in the final – but has since announced his retirement from all formats of the game.
Possible Targets:
Shahrukh Khan (Base Price: Rs 40 lakh)
If you watched the IPL 2022 auction, you might remember the Chennai camp desperately bidding for Shahrukh Khan. The batter was among the most sought-after Indian players after effectively winning Tamil Nadu the 2021 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy with his 15-ball 33-run cameo in the final, and understandably, CSK were interested in signing the localite.
They went as far as Rs 8.75 crore, but eventually lost out to a Rs 9 crore bid from Punjab Kings. But life in IPL has been a tad harsh for the 28-year-old, who scored only 273 runs in 22 matches across the last two seasons. These numbers, though, do very little to justify Shahrukh’s potential, and having shown interest in him previously, CSK could finally get him onboard.
Karun Nair (Base Price: Rs 50 lakh)
Chennai have a rather bizarre penchant for signing veterans who have seemingly gone past their prime, and then giving them the best swansong possible. Karun Nair fits this bill effortlessly.
The 32-year-old has scored only 37 runs in IPL since 2018, but recently launched a career rejuvenation bid by scoring 218 runs for Vidarbha in the 2023 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT).
Sarfaraz Khan (Base Price: Rs 20 lakh)
A rather left-field option CSK might pursue is Sarfaraz Khan. Once regarded as Indian cricket’s next-big-thing during his Royal Challengers Bangalore days, Sarfaraz might unfortunately have not lived up to the promise once shown, albeit Delhi Capitals’ fragile batting unit did not offer him much confidence either.
Category 2: Indian Pacer
Considering Tushar Deshpande picked up 21 wickets last season, and Mukesh Chowdhary will be returning to the fold after recuperating from his injury, this category might surprise a few, but there is a justification. For all of the wickets he took, Deshpande was expensive – conceding 9.92 runs per over. As for Choudhary, he is yet to play a single match this year. Hence, with the purse not being a problem, CSK could spend big on an Indian bowler.
Possible Targets:
Harshal Patel (Base Price: Rs 2 crore)
Going back to the IPL 2022 auction, CSK were among the three teams involved in the bidding war for Harshal Patel. The purple cap winner from 2021 might not have been at his best over the last couple of seasons, with 33 wickets in 28 matches not justifying his price tag of Rs 10.75 crore, Patel still remains among the better options from the Indian pace contingent.
He had a decent 2023 SMAT campaign for Haryana, picking up seven wickets, but has looked livelier in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he has scalped 15 wickets in his last seven matches, including a fifer.
Shardul Thakur (Base Price: Rs 2 crore)
Barring signing veterans, CSK also have the penchant for reuniting with players who had once donned the yellow. Shardul Thakur, a vital cog in CSK’s title-winning teams of 2018 and 2021, could hence be seen at Chepauk again.
The jack of all trades could not master anything in IPL 2023, picking up only seven wickets in 11 matches for Kolkata Knight Riders, but in the 48 matches he played for CSK, Shardul scalped 55 wickets. Moreover, similar to Jadeja and Chahar, he also belongs to the category of players who are seemingly at their best under Dhoni’s captaincy.
Chetan Sakariya (Base Price: Rs 50 lakh)
Another left-field option, CSK could rope in Chetan Sakariya should they not be absolutely confident about Mukesh Choudhary. While he did not get many opportunities in a Delhi Capitals shirt, Sakariya was an emerging find in IPL 2021, picking up 14 wickets in as many matches for Rajasthan Royals.
Category 3: Overseas All-Rounder
Having released English all-rounder Ben Stokes, and freed up Rs 16.25 crore subsequently, it will only make sense for CSK to sign another overseas all-rounder. Having said that, they already have a formidable overseas quartet for their playing XI, and a backup signing will do them just as good as an exorbitantly expensive one.
Possible Targets:
Pat Cummins (Base Price: Rs 2 crore)
Should they still opt for an expensive signing, Pat Cummins might be the best option. Having won the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup recently, Cummins offers seam bowling with both the new ball and at the death. Besides that – ask Mumbai Indians and you shall know – he can also hammer the ball if need be.
In his IPL career of 42 matches, the Australian skipper has picked up 45 wickets. Opportunities have been few and far in between with the bat, but his strike rate of 152.21 highlights his ability.
Azmatullah Omarzai (Base Price: Rs 50 lakh)
Among the seam-bowling overseas all-rounders who might not burn a hole in CSK’s pickets, Afghanistan’s Azmatullah Omarzai stands out after his impressive outing at the World Cup.
With seven wickets and 353 runs in nine matches, which includes three half-centuries, Omarzai proved his dexterity. And while all-round abilities are not in great demand since the implementation of the impact substitution rule, a player of Omarzai’s abilities is bound to add value and balance to any squad.
Michael Bracewell (Base Price: Rs 1 crore)
If CSK want to rope in a spin-bowling all-rounder as an alternative for Moeen Ali, who has not been in the best of forms of late, Michael Bracewell seems to be the perfect option.
Playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2023, the Kiwi picked up six wickets in five matches with his off-spin. He has also been in decent form, having picked up six wickets and scored a half-century in his last five T20 appearances, which came in England’s T20 Blast.
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