Big call by CSK.
One of the biggest talking point before IPL auction 2018 was about if R Ashwin would be bought back by Chennai Super Kings. Captain MS Dhoni who was retained by CSK said earlier that they would certainly try to buy Ashwin back, who was instrumental in many successful campaigns for the yellow team. Also the fact that he is a local Chennai lad, must have been weighed heavily by the team management.
However Ashwin was finally let go by CSK and he was bought by KXIP by Rs 7.6 crore. Preity Zinta managed to get Ashwin in their dugout after surviving biding attempt from Rajasthan Royals. Later speaking to the press, Preity Zinta said Ashwin is a legend and it's a honour to have him in the team. However she was tightlipped about the question of who will be the new captain of KXIP. Many believe Ashwin has been picked as a possible captain, but Finch who has captained Australia in the T20 format is also a probable candidate.
CSK coach Stephen Fleming when asked about the Ashwin snub, said that they were willing to pay Rs 4 crore for the offie. However, he said that CSK was aware that Ashwin would probably fetch a lot more and hence they weren't exactly hedging their bets on it. It should be noted as Dhoni as RPS captain didn't exactly repose trust on Ashwin during their horrible IPL 9 campaign. So Dhoni's inputs may have finally forced CSK not to go too hard for Ashwin. Ashwin is also currently out of Indian limited over squad.
In place of Ashwin, CSK got Harbhajan who has played all the past seasons for Mumbai Indians. Bhajji at the fag end of his career, with not much to show in recent times was sold in his base price of Rs 2 crore. Fleming said Bhajji will be handful in big Chepauk ground. He is also an off-spinner so can easily fill Ashwin's void in the CSK lineup. Bhajji will team up with Ravindra Jadeja who was retained by CSK before auction for a purse of Rs 11 crores. Ashwin will get Axar Patel as his bowling partner in KXIP, who was retained pre-auction by the franchise.
Former Indian batter and ex-CSK mentor Kris Srikkanth wasn't surprised by Ashwin exclusion, reports PTI. On Ashwin, he said: "I expected it, reason is that last year Washington Sundar played under (MS) Dhoni and Steve Smith for (Rising) Pune (Supergiant), and he was the most economical bowler. Now he is a T20 bowler for India, because they have an option in Washington Sunder."
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