Even before the start of this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL), the Chennai Super Kings have suffered a major blow with Suresh Raina withdrawing from all competition. The franchise announced the news on Saturday by stating that Suresh Raina cited personal reasons behind his decision.
The southpaw, who recently announced his retirement from international cricket, looked set to play the 2020 IPL. Along with the Super Kings team, he had traveled to the United Arab Emirates on August 21. It had also been part of a five-day preseason. camp in Chennai together with Captain MS Dhoni, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Ambati Rayudu, M Vijay and bowling consultant Laxmipathy Balaji.
Suresh Raina has returned to India for personal reasons and will not be available for the remainder of the IPL season. Chennai Super Kings offers full support to Suresh and his family during this time.
KS Viswanathan
CEO– Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) August 29, 2020
Losing the left-handed hitter will be a heavy blow to the three-time IPL champions. He is the all-time racing leader of Super Kings, adding 4,527 runs from 164 IPL games for the franchise. Suresh Raina is also the second highest scorer in IPL history with 5,368 runs, behind only Virat Kohli’s count of 5,412.
Replacement for Suresh Raina:
Losing a player of Suresh Raina’s stature can derail any team’s campaign and replacing him should be a priority. However, Chennai Super Kings is unlikely to seek a replacement right away. Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan has confirmed the same, according to The times of India.
“It is your personal decision to return and we will never question it. He has always done his best for CSK and we honor him ”. Viswanathan told the news outlet.
The Super Kings have also been rocked by various members of their squad, including two players who tested positive for COVID-19. Consequently, their quarantine period has been extended. Meanwhile, IPL 2020 is scheduled to start on September 19, while the final is on November 10.
