MS Dhoni, the captain of the Chennai Super Kings, has said his team is “hurt” after they suffered their eighth loss in 11 games to reach the bottom of the points table. After the Super Kings worked 30-for-6 and then 114-for-9 in their 20 overs, the defending champion Mumbai Indians knocked down the goal in 13 overs, handing the Super Kings their first ten wicket loss in the IPL, in Sharjah.
“Well it hurts and what you need to see are things that are going wrong,” Dhoni told host broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation. “And especially this year hasn’t really been our year and everything, except one or two games where we’ve hit and played well together and played well together … So, at the end of the day, whether you lose by eight wickets or ten wickets, it doesn’t matter. Where we are in the tournament state, it will definitely hurt and I think all the players are suffering and doing their best. It doesn’t always go your way, but hopefully in the next three games, we will try to put our last Stand “.
Since their five-wicket win against Mumbai in the season opener in Abu Dhabi, the Super Kings have not clicked in unison, going from one defeat to another. The injuries haven’t helped them either. His key middle-order hitter, Ambati Rayudu, suffered a hamstring strain in that Mumbai game in which he scored a 71 of 48 balls, and while he returned to action after missing two games, it hasn’t been quite as fluid as in the first game. . Then, in a crucial clash against the Delhi Capitals, their designated death pitcher Dwayne Bravo was unavailable to pitch the final due to a groin injury.
After Bravo was subsequently excluded from the rest of the IPL, the Super Kings readjusted their squad in the second leg against Mumbai on Friday, giving Imran Tahir his first game of the tournament and also included rookies Ruturaj Gaikwad and N Jagadeesan. While both batters bagged ducks in a high-order collapse induced by Trent Boult and Jasprit Bumrah, Tahir was left without wicketless, as were the rest of the Super Kings bowlers. Dhoni attributed the Super Kings’ steep decline to a combination of those factors.
“Again, what you need to see is where he went wrong again,” Dhoni said. “I felt the second game [against the Rajasthan Royals] it was more about bowling; the batting did not appear and Rayudu was injured. Some of the other players got a chance and maybe they weren’t there 200% or maybe they couldn’t act. He just kept putting pressure on the batting order and every time we never got off to a good start it got more and more difficult for the middle order.
“In cricket, when you’re going through a tough phase, there are some things that should go your way: a little luck is always good and I felt like this tournament didn’t go really well for us. The games where we wanted to hit first, really we have not won the toss and in games hit second, the wicket has slowed down or there may be dew. [a] Suddenly we decide to hit first and there is a lot of spray on the field. If things have not turned out the way you want, those are the things you study and see what you can give the players to do so. “
When asked whether not playing at his home at the MA Chidambaram stadium, where Dhoni usually controls the game with his spinners on the rotating tracks, had them paralyzed, Dhoni reiterated that there could be “a hundred reasons” for his fights in the UAE. United.
“Whenever you are not doing well, there can be hundreds of reasons, especially if you sit back and find out the reasons why we are not doing well. But, the main thing you ask yourself or as a team is, ‘Are you playing? with the potential that you have. Like, say, whatever the conditions are, when you put in a playing XI that looks good on paper, have they done enough to translate the good stats they have on the I think this year, no We’ve done that, and cumulatively when three or four of your hitters aren’t right in the batting order, it gets harder and harder. “
The Super Kings can still mathematically sneak into the playoffs, but Dhoni was pragmatic, shifting his focus toward identifying players for the 2021 IPL, which could be played starting next April.
“It is important for us to have a clear picture about next year,” he said. “There are a lot of yeses and buts: the type of auction we’re seeing next year, where the venues will be. It’s always good to give players who haven’t had enough opportunities to form an established gaming XI so far. Give them enough opportunities. to really give them a platform where they can perform and show their talents. “
New Zealand spin-bowling allrounder Mitchell Santner and local bowlers KM Asif and R Sai Kishore, who haven’t had a game so far this season, will likely be tested in the last three Super games. Kings this season.
“So the next three games will be an ideal opportunity,” Dhoni said. “We have to make the most of it because you really don’t want to be in a situation like that, but once you are, what is the most you can achieve? And it is preparation for next year.”
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