Former India opener turned famous commentator Aakash Chopra believes Shikhar Dhawan can be one of the prime targets of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the upcoming IPL 2022 Auction. Dhawan scored 587 runs at an impressive average of 39.13 in IPL 2021 but Delhi Capitals (DC) didn’t retain him ahead of the mega auction.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra added that the Chennai Super Kings has a liking towards left-handers. He suggested that Dhawan could be picked as an opening batter. He said: “They just love lefties. Shikhar Dhawan – if they don’t get Faf with Ruturaj, they will pick Shikhar Dhawan, if they get him for two to three crores. They will 100% want to pick Shikhar Dhawan. Dhawan with Ruturaj – what a left and right-hand combination, they might anyway get Faf.”
Chopra elaborated: “Among the left-handed bowlers – Trent Boult, Mustafizur Rahman, Natarajan, Obed McCoy. There are not too many but they might be seen running after whoever is available, Tymal Mills maybe.”
Meanwhile, Sam Curran was part of the CSK team but he has opted out of IPL 2022. And, Aakash Chopra reckons either Rahul Chahar or Yuzvendra Chahal might be seen in yellow this time.
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He observed: “A lot of leg-spinners are available. Rahul Chahar is there, Yuzi Chahal is also there, Mujeeb, Imran Tahir. They [CSK] would surely have interest in one out of Chahar and Chahal because it is very good if they can get an Indian spinner. Otherwise, they will keep Zampa as well. They don’t mind that they are getting an overseas spinner. No problem in keeping him as long as they have made their Indian core strong.”
Aakash Chopra has also named some of the all-rounders the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) might be keen to buy at the IPL 2022 Auction. And, they have already retained a couple of such players – Ravindra Jadeja and Moeen Ali – ahead of the mega auction as well.
He continued: “You can include Shakib Al Hasan in the multi-faceted players they can get. They might have a slight interest in Krunal Pandya although he is a Jaddu-type bowler. So they might not think that much about him but Dhoni does odd things at times. They might like Jason Holder because he also suits their philosophy a lot. Chris Woakes hasn’t put his name, too many all-rounders are not there, this is a big problem. Mitchell Marsh – once again a multi-faceted player but they will keep the fitness issue in mind.”
Meanwhile, Jason Holder has done well for the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the last two seasons of the IPL. He reasoned: “They think somewhat differently. I feel they [CSK] will run after Washington Sundar. Off-spinner, batting – multi-faceted, local boy. He could be a very important player for them. Jimmy Neesham – that’s the kind of players they don’t mind. Shivam Dube, Vijay Shankar, Deepak Hooda – these are the names I remember when I look towards Indian all-rounders. They might be interested in all of them.”
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Aakash Chopra also added: “Focus on the experienced players, this has been their strategy and philosophy. Dhoni likes players like that. They don’t run after youth, they don’t run after exciting talent. They like to pick ripened players. Their philosophy probably is that the known devil is better than the unknown one.”
He explained: “The experienced players who will be back in the market include Ambati Rayudu, Dinesh Karthik, Ravichandran Ashwin, Robin Uthappa, David Warner, Bravo, Ferguson, Nathan Coulter Nile, Shakib Al Hasan and Jayant Yadav.”
However, CSK has also retained Ruturaj Gaikwad apart from their experienced trio of MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja and Moeen Ali ahead of the auction. On the other hand, Suresh Raina has been an integral part of the CSK team since the inaugural season but they didn’t retain him as well. Apart from him, Faf du Plessis is likely to be another player whom CSK can target.
Aakash Chopra elaborated: “What will be their pecking order amongst the experienced players? I feel they will let Raina go. They might again pick Robin Uthappa extremely cheap. Shakib Al Hasan will definitely be there in their list because it suits their style.”
“I won’t be surprised at all if they look towards Steve Smith. Warner probably does not suit them. They might bring back Faf du Plessis. I see their interest in Faf du Plessis, Ravichandran Ashwin and Shakib Al Hasan. Steve Smith – outside chance. They won’t look towards Dinesh Karthik,” Aakash Chopra concluded.
