Since his legacy is set in stone and he has nothing to lose as of now, it could free the 39-year-old and allow him to take a bolder and less circumspect approach to his hitting. Doing so will simply turn back the clock to your younger days. He, of course, has not played competitive cricket since the 50+ World Cup in July last year, but is said to be looking for an excellent touch on the nets.
While his hitting approach will be watched closely, this season could prove to be one of his toughest assignments as captain. With recent retreats of senior professionals Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh In addition to less practice time for the team due to a longer quarantine period, CSK’s preparations have run into several hurdles.
The team also contains many players who are close to 30 and need to be handled wisely. However, judging by Dhoni’s own record, these adversities are sure to get his competitive juice flowing and propel him to try and lead CSK to their fourth IPL title.
CSK SWOT ANALYSIS
Strengths: Experienced players who have been there have. People like Dhoni, Watson and Rayudu know what it takes to deliver under pressure.
Weaknesses: With Harbhajan retiring, the CSK lacks a cunning spinner in conditions to aid spin. Raina’s departure leaves a huge void at position number 3.
Opportunities: A retired Dhoni has nothing to lose now. You can hit freely.
Threats: They have had less prep time in UAE compared to other teams due to Covid cases on the team. You can’t just trust older players.
TOI CSK XI: Shane Watson, M Vijay, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Piyush Chawla, Deepak Chahar, Lungi Ngidi, Imran Tahir
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