Forget the numbers - Ben Stokes, Chennai and CSK just feels right
The moment someone talks about Ben Stokes, your mind immediately goes back to that World Cup final in 2019, when he single-handedly, dragged England to victory. The next memory is perhaps of him huffing and puffing in front of thousands at the MCG, yet, finding a way to make England win the T20 World Cup.
But you look at his T20I numbers, and they don’t do justice to the talent he possesses. He averages 21.66 in T20Is, and strikes at 128. His overall T20 stats are not world-beating either – an average of 25.06 and a strike rate of 133.39. With the ball, too, he averages 30.41 and concedes 8.41 runs per over.
So, this is not exactly what the Chennai Super Kings needed this season. They struggled for batting momentum for much of their last campaign, and their side seemed to have an anchor too many. Their death bowling was also not great, and they were the second-worst side during that phase in IPL 2022.
From that perspective, someone like Sam Curran, who can affect matches with the ball at the death, and tee off without many sighters, would have fit the bill perfectly. Even Cameron Green, who throws caution to the wind in the powerplay, seems a better fit than England's Test skipper on paper.
Ben Stokes could be an inspired buy for CSK
But that is the thing with this franchise. And players such as Stokes. Numbers, stats, and conventional logic will never ever define them. It is about what goes on between the ears, and how their temperament comes through when it really matters. Stokes, irrespective of however he is playing, finds a way to win the moments that really matter. If you have not noticed yet, that is what CSK and a certain MS Dhoni have been doing ever since they joined hands.
If you look closely, there are several other reasons why CSK have brought the Englishman on board. His strike rate against spin throughout his T20 career is 136.78, which is not bad. On the usually sluggish surfaces in Chennai, that record will be tested to the hilt. Stokes, though, will not die wondering – something CSK were, at times, guilty of last season.
The other and more prominent reason is that Stokes, if it comes to it, could be a captaincy option. CSK like talismanic leaders and whenever Dhoni hangs up his boots, they will need a successor. If they think Ruturaj Gaikwad is not ready for that gig yet, then in Stokes, they will have a readymade succession plan.
Oh, and there is also the matter of CSK reuniting three of the most exciting all-rounders in the world. For various reasons, Moeen Ali and Ravindra Jadeja could not have the desired impact in IPL 2022. But now, they have Stokes for company. Because the three will most probably play in tandem, each will have to deal with less pressure, thereby opening up the chance for them to let their hair down, and just be themselves. When that happens, opposition teams usually have to scurry for cover.
The biggest tilting scale, though, is the mentality that the England Test captain brings to the table. There is nothing on a cricket field that perturbs him, and even if he might seem a little animated, he is very calm and composed under the lid, almost like Dhoni.
That has surfaced already in the time he has been in charge of England’s Test team. Through sheer heart, he has rejuvenated what was a stumbling side before he took over. CSK, too, seemed to lack ideas a little in IPL 2022. So, now, if you look at this, it all makes sense and it does add up.
There were quite a few other options that CSK could have explored. Curran, as expected, was at the forefront. But once it became clear he would exceed their budget, they only had their eyes on Stokes. If anything, this could prove to be a more inspired signing because of how he is as a person and how the qualities he values are also the attributes CSK and Dhoni cherish.
Ask him to run through a brick wall, and he will do it. Ask him to put everything on the line, and he will do it. Ask him to win games of cricket single-handedly under pressure, and chances are he will do it. That sort of trust, belief and faith is what CSK have been built upon.
This marriage, which many thought could never work out, actually feels a match made in heaven. Forget the numbers. CSK and Stokes will never be defined by those anyway. But just take a moment to soak it all in. Stokes. In the yellow of CSK. In front of a packed Chepauk. And alongside the likes of Dhoni, Jadeja, Moeen and Ruturaj Gaikwad – it just feels so………right.
So much so that whenever someone speaks about Stokes now, you already imagine him wearing CSK colours. And he has not even played a game yet.