IPL 2018 Final, CSK vs SRH: Return to glory days beckons

On the eve of this season’s Indian Premier League (IPL) opener against Mumbai Indians, comeback team Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) head coach Stephen Fleming was asked if they had erred in picking old warhorses instead of young blood in the mega auction held earlier in the year.

Despite the shortest format being perceived as a youngster’s game, the former New Zealand skipper didn’t hesitate in his reply to justify CSK’s 30-plus picks at the auction: “I value experience. We always have and if the professional player is in shape and performing well, I think they’re a valuable asset. Not often do you see young players come out and make a mark. People talk a lot about it but very rarely do young players shoot the lights out.”

While Fleming was optimistic, not many were convinced that the ‘Dad’s Army’ had the right arsenal to bring back CSK’s glory days.

Exactly 50 days to those words of wisdom by Fleming, the bunch of old men, sprinkled by a touch of youth and led by a 36-year-old veteran MS Dhoni, have emerged as the powerhouse of this year’s IPL and will be playing their seventh final when they meet Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede here on Sunday.

The comeback story of CSK as well as Dhoni’s reunion with the franchise that returned after serving a two-year ban due to the 2013 spot-fixing scandal has turned out to be an ideal masala recipe in this season’s IPL dish.

Come Sunday, it won’t be surprising to see the Wankhede being painted yellow by the loyal Chennai fans in the big title clash, where all is at stake for both teams.

And yet, even if the end result doesn’t turn out in favour of the Men in Yellow, their performance through the season is sure to be counted among one of the most successful stories of this IPL.

A story that first began at the IPL auctions.

They first retained their core group of players in Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja before buying their previous match-winners in Faf du Plessis and all-rounder Dwayne Bravo.  They then bought proven performers like Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, Imran Tahir and Harbhajan Singh, making the CSK core playing unit’s age over 30, barring Jadeja (28).

That the tactic was working was seen in their opening game against Mumbai Indians, which they won in the last over after Kedar Jadhav’s thrilling finish to follow Bravo’s heroics.

From then on, there was no stopping Dhoni and Co.

They maintained their top four position in the points table with some consistent performances throughout the league stage. 

Rayudu (586), who played an opener-cum-floater’s role, got them flying starts along with all-rounder Watson.

Dhoni, too, returned to his old style with his old franchise, something he had struggled to do in the previous two seasons for Rising Pune Supergiant. 

A total of 455 runs in 15 games with a strike rate of over 150, which included 30 sixes, proved Dhoni was back to his yore.

Their bowling department may not have matched their batting prowess but CSK did pretty decently with the ball.

All in all, CSK’s performance on the field so far has gone a long way in erasing its embarrassing two-year ban. 

But be rest assured, SRH will be out to prevent CSK from putting the icing on the cake. 

CSK’s recipe for success

• Retaining the core of MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja
• Buying experience hands like Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo and Harbhajan Singh
• Ambati Rayudu’s form with the bat — 586 runs in 15 matches (1x100, 3x50s)
• Dhoni’s return to form with the bat — 455 runs (15 matches, 3x50s)
• Bowlers hunting in packs, with Shardul Thakur leading the show (15 wickets)
• Rayudu and Watson’s solid opening starts (438 runs together)