Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar has lauded the Chennai Super Kings for sparking a remarkable resurgence in IPL 2021 after a poor season last year. Chennai Super Kings were one of the consistent teams of IPL 2021 and finished the tournament second until the BCCI suspended it due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Sunil Gavaskar remarked that the yellow army played like a champion team.
Chennai Super Kings endured a forgettable outing in IPL 2020 as it became the first edition when they did not reach the playoffs. MS Dhoni and co. struggled to put powerful batting performances as their opener Shane Watson was highly out of form. With MS Dhoni losing his reflexes and Suresh Raina deciding to skip the season, the yellow army suffered some crushing losses. As a result, their playoffs chances ended before their final two games.
But the three-time champions produced top-notch performances this year as they won five out of their seven games. Despite a seven-wicket loss to the Delhi Capitals in their opening match, the Super Kings registered five wins on the trot. Unfortunately, their final fixture of IPL 2021 resulted in a disappointing loss to the Mumbai Indians as they could not defend 219 in 20 overs.
There was a renewed energy about the team this time: Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar observed that Chennai Super Kings looked like the champion team it had been all these years as they had a renewed energy in them without significant changes to their squad. The 71-year old lauded the franchise’s move to promote Moeen Ali at number three, Faf Du Plessis’ cracking form, and Ruturaj Gaikwad providing brisk starts. Gavaskar was also impressed with Sam Curran, who he considers as a proper all-rounder now; however, he feels that their death bowling needs to improve, considering their performance against Mumbai as they could not defend 218.
“All the other teams were in top form with last year’s disappointing team, Chennai Super Kings, looking like the champion it usually had been all these years. There was a renewed energy about the team this time, though there were no major changes to its squad. The promotion of Moeen Ali to the top of the order at No. 3 turned out to be a masterstroke as the left-handed batsman produced some blistering innings. The seasoned Faf du Plessis was in cracking form, too, and, along with the promising Ruturaj Gaekwad, gave the team some top starts. Sam Curran continues to impress and improve with every game and bids fair to be considered a proper all-rounder now. It’s the final overs’ bowling that the side needs to strengthen as was evident in the match against Mumbai when, despite scoring 218, it lost the game off the last ball,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar.
Also Read: Aakash Chopra Surprised By Chennai Super Kings’ Turnaround In IPL 2021
