Dhoni knows the formula for winning: Srikkanth
“Last year’s final was one of the most magical moments in IPL history, and to win the title with such an inexperienced bowling attack was next to impossible.
Subramaniam Badrinath
CHENNAI: As the eagerly awaited Indian Premier League (IPL) draws near, defending champion Chennai Super Kings (CSK) will look to add another trophy to its tally and continue the winning streak as experts Krishnamachari Srikkanth and Subramaniam Badrinath got together to share their views on CSK’s strategy ahead of the marquee tournament starting on March 22.
With bowling coach Dwayne Bravo arriving on Thursday to take part in his first practice session, last season’s final hero, Ravindra Jadeja, arrived in the city on Friday and joined the team.
“Last year’s final was one of the most magical moments in IPL history, and to win the title with such an inexperienced bowling attack was next to impossible,” said Badrinath, former CSK player, speaking at the launch of Star Sports Tamil’s ‘Incredible Star Cast’ show.
With the five-time champion being beset by injuries, starting with the news of Devon Conway earlier this month, Matheesha Pathirana is now likely to miss the initial few games due to a hamstring injury. It will be interesting to see the team combination with which the MS Dhoni-led side will move forward.
“Dhoni has a winning formula, and his ability to make smart decisions irrespective of the situation of the game has given them five titles. With good buys from CSK in this auction, for sure the sixth trophy is coming for jersey number seven,” said K Srikkanth, former India captain.
Elaborating on the CSK’s combination strategy this year, Badrinath said, “Right from the time I’ve played for CSK in 2009 till now, the team’s approach in the initial stage of every season will be to reach the top four. And they will choose a combination based on that mindset.”
With the addition of Mustafizur Rahman, the team has a back-up death bowler to step in if the situation arises. “Mustafizur was a smart buy from CSK. Over the years, we’ve seen the aversion of CSK towards left-arm seamers, right from Doug Bollinger to Dirk Nannes and a lot of other players. And his (Mustafizur) strength is change of pace, which will prove useful in Chepauk conditions,” added Badrinath. The five-time champion will take on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the season opener on March 22 at Chepauk. This match will be Virat Kohli’s first outing in cricket this year.
