Former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori believes Chennai Super Kings will have to replace Deepak Chahar with an international bowler.
Chahar had suffered a quadricep tear in the third T20I against West Indies and had limped off the field. The swing fast bowler had taken two wickets in his spell against the Windies and had accounted for Kyle Mayers and Shai Hope.
He was subsequently ruled out of the series against Sri Lanka and he is also expected to miss a major part of the IPL.
Meanwhile, Chennai Super Kings had broken the bank for Deepak Chahar as he was bought for a whopping amount of INR 14 crores in the IPL mega auction. Thus, it is a big blow for the MS Dhoni-led team as Chahar was their lead bowler.
Vettori believes CSK will have to play both Adam Milne and Chris Jordan in the absence of Deepak Chahar and thus they will have to leave out Devon Conway and bring in veteran batter Robin Uthappa.
Daniel Vettori said on ESPN Cricinfo, “If he does (miss the start of the season), it is going to be a huge loss. I think they will have to reconfigure their overseas bowlers. Adam Milne can get a game.. Chris Jordan as well. Those two overseas bowlers could potentially come in. That would mean someone like Conway misses out and they would have to bring Uthappa in. I don’t think they can replace him with a domestic bowler, they will have to replace him with an international bowler.”
Former RCB captain reckons Adam Milne will be the favorite to replace Deepak Chahar in the final XI.
“I think it’d be Adam Milne. His performance has been exceptional around the world. I think Milne could be more destructive, can swing the ball,” said Vettori.
On the other hand, former Indian openers Wasim Jaffer and Aakash Chopra believe MS Dhoni will invest in youngsters to deliver the goods in the powerplay overs.
“I think MS Dhoni will be giving confidence to younger guys. Whether it be Tushar Deshpande or Simranjeet Singh who bowls for Delhi in Powerplay. Mukesh Choudhary bowls at a decent pace,” said Jaffer.
“If there was a replacement, he wouldn’t have gone on ₹14 crore, so that is as simple as it is. Yes, you’re going to be missing a lot of wickets in Powerplay overs, but is that the only way to succeed in a T20 game? It is an important component, you pick up early wickets and you get a fantastic start. But isn’t there a different formula to succeed? That is what the CSK would be thinking about,” said Aakash.
Chennai Super Kings will begin their title defense against the previous season’s runners-up Kolkata Knight Riders at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on March 26.
