NEWS
Follow UsChennai Super Kings annihilated Gujarat Titans in Chennai on March 26 (Tuesday) on the might of their batting depth. Throughout their innings, they batted well over nine runs per over before Shivam Dube charged up to take the home side past the 200-run mark.
Like IPL 2023, CSK have maximized the Impact player advantage the most, which allowed them to play Mahendra Singh Dhoni at No.8 without worrying about batting depth. It has been a result of a prudent auction, plus players having an incredible amount of role clarity. CSK’s batting coach Michael Hussey lauded that aspect of their batting and how the batting depth has allowed the top-order to weigh in their options more positively.
"We've got MSD at #8, which is crazy. MSD is batting really well at the moment as well. Because we've got so much depth in resources, it means the players up the order, if they're in sort of two minds, take the positive route and they'll certainly have the backing from the coaches and the captain,” Michael Hussey said in the post-match press conference.
"We prefer you to try and push the game forward as much as you can, and if you get out in doing so, it's fine; you'll never be criticized for that. Flem's talk is about playing fast," Hussey said.
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After scoring a 15-ball 37 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Rachin Ravindra hit a 20-ball 46 against Gujarat Titans, setting the base early on. He has magnificently filled in for the absence of Devon Conway, who had a crazy season in the 2023 edition. Hussey was all praise for the Kiwi youngster, especially for his clear mind.
"He's had a great start. He's been awesome to watch. He's just come here, full of energy, just wants to learn so much and make a positive impact on the team environment," Hussey said. "He is just enjoying it. He's trying to soak up as much knowledge as he possibly can and he really feeds off the crowds here as well.
"I think once he got a couple of good shots early, his confidence just grew and he believed that yeah, I can perform on this stage, and he's grown from there. I think he's gone out there with a clear mind and a nice positive attitude," Hussey added.
CSK are also well placed because of how Shivam Dube batted in the middle order, doing away with the massive chink in armour against short balls. Dube was primarily known as a spin specialist, only attempting sixes, but as seen in IPL 2024 already, he has delivered against pacers too.
"You rewind maybe one or two years ago, teams were coming to bowl the short ball and he would either duck out of the way or defend. That's all he had until he got in and set and then he played some shots against it. Now the bowlers are still coming at him with the same plan but he's able to score off it as well and he's been able to find boundaries if he gets in the right positions as well," the Australian said.
"I've got to give a lot of credit to Dube. He's gone away, and worked and worked and worked tirelessly against the short ball in his own time. Not [just] here in our time. He works hard on it here as well, he gets the throwers to throw a lot of short stuff to him," Hussey added.
