3 Players Chennai Super Kings (CSK) should retain ahead of IPL 2022 Auction
In this article, we take a look at three players Chennai Super Kings (CSK) should retain ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction.
Dust hasn’t even settled on the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and already there is a great sense of anticipation around teams’ potential retentions and RTMs for the next year’s tournament.
With the IPL set to expand to a 10-team event from 2022, all eyes are on the BCCI and the number of retentions they allow the existing franchises to make ahead of the mega auction.
The Indian board will be looking to maintain a fine balance where they don’t disturb the combinations of the existing eight teams too much but also make sure that the new franchises are not hard done by.
However, even at a lenient rate, the existing franchises are expected to be allowed at least three retentions up their sleeves going into the mega auction. Keeping in mind this possibility, here are the three strongest possible retentions for IPL 2021 champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
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Who will CSK retain ahead of the IPL 2022?
3 potential Chennai Super Kings (CSK) retentions ahead of IPL 2022
1. Ruturaj Gaikwad
CSK may not be known for being a franchise that nourishes and produces young talents but in the last couple of seasons, a gem of a young player in Gaikwad has emerged out of their ranks. The Maharashtra right-hander has been an invaluable addition to the CSK side.
He was one of the shining lights in CSK’s disastrous IPL 2020 and proved to be a pivotal figure in their inspiring resurgence in IPL 2021. After a slow start to the season in India in April, Gaikwad went on to bag the ‘Orange Cap’ with 635 runs at an average of 45.35 and strike-rate of 136.26. Gaikwad’s tally included four fifties and a memorable hundred against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Abu Dhabi.
2. Faf du Plessis
South Africa may have looked past the experienced Du Plessis for the T20 World Cup but with a bumper IPL 2021 for CSK, the experienced right-hander proved there is still a lot of cricket left in him. Du Plessis batted magnificently in both the Indian and the UAE leg of the tournament.
Having built the momentum with him through the first half, the 37-year-old carried that forward into the second leg of the competition. Du Plessis finished only two runs shy of wearing the ‘Orange Cap’ himself, scoring 633 runs from his 16 innings at an average of 45.21 and strike-rate of 138.20.
Du Plessis made as many as six half-centuries in the competition, including an extremely crucial knock of 86 off 59 balls in the final in Dubai against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
3. Ravindra Jadeja
Jadeja has always been an integral member of the CSK line-up as a left-arm spinner and in the last couple of years, he has also taken his game as a batter to the next level, becoming the allrounder of great significance and impact for his team.
Since the start of IPL 2020, Jadeja has maintained a strike-rate of 157.73 while averaging 57.37 – a record reflecting a massive improvement in his stroke-making abilities and an expanded range as a lower-order aggressor. In this period, the 32-year-old has also taken 19 wickets with an economy rate of 7.78.
He was instrumental in CSK winning the IPL 2021 title, making his runs at a strike-rate of 145.51 while averaging 75.66 in what were not the easiest conditions to bat in India and UAE and backed his batting exploits with 13 wickets at only 7.06 runs per over.