It was anticipated that the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 will be more challenging than before, given the addition of two new teams. But hardly anyone expected that the big guns will have a wobbly start to their respective campaigns in the tournament.
The chain of events began with the season opener on March 26 when defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squared off against last year’s runner-up Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Both teams entered the field under new captains; Shreyas Iyer led Kolkata while Ravindra Jadeja had the command of Chennai.
Once the match kicked off, all the loopholes in CSK’s game plan started getting exposed. The soldiers of Dad’s Army were returning to the pavilion one after another, reminding the fans of IPL 2020. But then came MS Dhoni and turned the wheel of time backwards. Once the top-order was back in the hut, he took the onus and returned with an unbeaten 50 of 38 deliveries. A crucial 70-run stand between him and his successor, Jadeja, helped CSK set a 132-run target for KKR.
Advertisement
The CSK fans were filled with hopes that their team might pull it off from here, especially after taking a stroll back in time. But what happened next was enough to fade out the Dhoni touch.
IPL 2022 – FULL COVERAGE | SCHEDULE | RESULTS | ORANGE CAP | PURPLE CAP
Their bowling attack looked completely handicapped without Deepak Chahar. Barring veteran Dwayne Bravo, who scalped three wickets, no other bowler could match the standards of the tournament. CSK were defending a low total of 131 depending on the likes of Adam Milne, Tushar Deshpande, Mitchell Santner, Bravo, Shivam Dube and Ravindra Jadeja. The unit was laced with several experienced campaigners but KKR managed to have the edge that night. Iyer’s boys were home with six wickets in hand and 9 balls to spare.
The opening game was enough to explain what had gone wrong with CSK at the auction table earlier in February. They had released the likes of Shardul Thakur, Josh Hazlewood, Imran Tahir, Lungi Ngidi, to name a few, and replaced them with a rather inexperienced bunch of players. The new recruits have indeed worked hard to be in the CSK camp but are surely not the like-to-like replacements for the ones who are no more associated with the team this season.
Though they managed to rope in Chahar back and also purchased Chris Jordan and Milne but now they aren’t available due to fitness-related issues.
Milne picked up an injury in the first game while Jordan has a tonsil infection and is yet to recover. Chahar too is recovering from a quadricep tear at the NCA. In such a situation, the team had to rely upon youngsters in Tushar Deshpande, Dube and Mukesh Choudhary in their next encounter against debutant Lucknow Super Giants and the results were devastating.
The batters did an excellent job in the next encounter, piling up 210 runs following brilliant knocks from Robin Uthappa (50) and Dube (49). But a lackluster bowling attack ruined the show for CSK. Things turned ugly when Dube was surprisingly given the penultimate over. He hadn’t bowled before in the game and trusting him was so similar to the final of ICC World T20 2007 when Dhoni showed faith in Joginder Sharma.
Advertisement
The trick had an adverse effect this time; probably one of the worst turnarounds. LSG needed 37 off the last 12 balls and Dube gave away 25 in six balls. KL Rahul’s side clinched the game with 6 wickets in hands and the men in yellow were left with disappointed faces.
Two straight losses won’t affect CSK much, given they find a way to return strong. Their batting has the gas but the bowling unit is all but unstable. The absence of established players has left CSK with no other option than to put their bet on the uncapped cricketers who are yet to be tested. The 4-time champions will face Punjab Kings in their next encounter and it won’t be a surprise if either Rajvardhan Hangargerkar or Prashant Solanki get their maiden cap.
Get all the latest updates on Cricket News, Cricket Photos, Cricket Videos, IPL 2022 Live Updates and Cricket Scores here
