3 reasons why CSK have the best squad for IPL 2024
Defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have made some excellent additions to their squad ahead of IPL 2024. CSK opted to spend ₹14 crore to acquire New Zealand all-rounder Daryl Mitchell's services, while they also spent ₹8.4 crore to sign uncapped Indian all-rounder Sameer Rizvi.
To further strengthen their all-rounders' section, CSK re-signed Shardul Thakur for ₹4 crore and roped in New Zealand's rising star Rachin Ravindra for ₹1.8 crore. It is pertinent to note that CSK already had a champion squad that lifted the trophy six months ago in Ahmedabad, and they have a host of new options now. Here is the full squad:
CSK Squad for IPL 2024: MS Dhoni (c and wk), Ajay Mandal, Ajinkya Rahane, Deepak Chahar, Devon Conway, Maheesh Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana, Mitchell Santner, Moeen Ali, Mukesh Choudhary, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Shardul Thakur, Sameer Rizvi, Mustafizur Rahman, Avanish Rao Aravelly, Nishant Sindhu, Prashant Solanki, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shaik Rasheed, Shivam Dube, Simarjeet Singh, Tushar Deshpande.
In this listicle, we will look at the three reasons why CSK have the best squad in IPL 2024.
#1 Chennai Super Kings signed solid replacements for Ambati Rayudu and Ben Stokes
CSK lost two major players from their squad ahead of the IPL 2024 Auction. The first player was Ambati Rayudu, who announced retirement from the IPL earlier this year. The second name was Ben Stokes, who skipped the 2024 season due to workload issues.
To make up for Rayudu's absence, CSK went hard for uncapped Indian player Sameer Rizvi at the auction. In case you didn't know, Rizvi smacked the fastest hundred in UPT20 League. He is known for his solid batting against the spin bowlers.
Next, for Ben Stokes' replacement, Chennai spent big on Daryl Mitchell. While Mitchell is not on Stokes' level yet, he has shown that he can score big in pressure situations, and CSK simply love such players.
#2 CSK have a proper backup for almost every position in IPL 2024
MS Dhoni may have a hard time forming a playing XI this time because he has plenty of good options in the squad. Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway and Ajinkya Rahane will be the first-choice top-order batters, but CSK also have Rachin Ravindra in the team.
Similarly, the Chennai-based franchise has roped in Mustafizur Rahman as a backup for Matheesha Pathirana. With Shardul Thakur and Mukesh Choudhary back in the squad, last season's star performer Tushar Deshpande might not get a place in the XI.
CSK thus ticked many boxes at the auction.
#3 The MS Dhoni factor
MS Dhoni has won five IPL trophies as captain. Even when he did not have the strongest squad by his side, he managed to get the best out of the available resources and delivered the goods for the Chennai Super Kings.
This time, Captain Cool has a solid bunch of players. With him being the captain of the squad, CSK look stronger than ever. It should not be a surprise if Chennai win their sixth trophy in IPL 2024.