IPL 2019: Why Chennai Super Kings will not buy Yuvraj Singh
Chennai Super Kings had a dramatic return to the IPL after a 2-year hiatus. Not only was captain cool back in his den, but CSK also earned a reputation as the franchise for players who are past their prime looking for that last one leap. Even with most of their players in their 30s, CSK emerged victorious last season and the love affair between Dhoni and Chennai continued.
Now with another IPL season around the corner and IPL Auction 2019 all set to take place on December 18th, there seems to be an incredible amount of talks and requests from fans all around the world about CSK buying Yuvraj Singh in the IPL Auction 2019.
Yuvraj was among the 11 players who were released by Kings XI Punjab and will be looking forward to the auction table to see which franchises are interested in procuring his services in the upcoming IPL 2019. While most of the franchises go after young blood and talent, CSK does have the history of trying out experienced professionals and getting the best out of them. And most of the fans do feel, CSK is the best option for Yuvraj Singh in the upcoming season.
Here, in this article let us look at why CSK will not buy Yuvraj Singh contradictory to what the fans feel.
CSK has a purse money of Rs.8.40 Crore and can buy a maximum of 2 Indian players. Now the big question is will CSK even use that money to buy anyone?
In the IPL Auction 2018, CSK was the team that was left with maximum purse money after the auction. They had Rs.6.50 crore of their purse money remaining after buying 25 players and it is interesting that they went on to win the IPL having spent the least of any side.
CSK presently only has 23 players and last year they had a squad of 25. Now, what will be their IPL 2019 auction strategy? Does Yuvraj Singh feature anywhere? Let us have a look at what CSK's IPL 2019 auction strategy might look like.
CSK IPL Auction 2019 Strategy - CSK don't need a top-order batsman
Now let us try to get into the shoes of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and try to evaluate what actually does CSK need to do in the IPL Auction 2019.
From the retained players, let us try to see who fits where and who are the replacements for that position.
2 Openers - Shane Watson & Faf du Plessis
Backup players - M Vijay, Sam Billings
3 Indian top-order Batsmen - Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu & MS Dhoni
Backup players - Kedar Jadhav, Dhruv Shorey, Narayan Jagadeesan, Chaitanya Bishnoi
2 all-rounders ( One Overseas) - Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo
Backup players - David Willey, Mitchell Santner
1 Indian Spinner - Karn Sharma
Backup players - Harbhajan Singh
2 Indian fast-medium Bowlers - Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur
Backup players - KM Asif, Monu Kumar
1 Overseas Bowler -Lungi Ngidi
Backup players - Imran Tahir, David Willey
As you can see, CSK has most of their bases covered and the only problem they have is that they don't have an Indian all-rounder to replace Ravindra Jadeja if he gets injured. That is why they might look to get one or two good Indian all-rounders like Axar Patel or Gurkeerat Mann.
Coming back to the Yuvraj story, the southpaw has to fit into the top order and even the in-form Kedar Jadhav remains as a backup player in the squad. With this squad balance, it is highly unlikely that Yuvraj will interest the CSK management in the auction. Especially considering the fact that he is primarily just a batsman these days and doesn't really bowl all that much.
Now, let us assume that Yuvraj is bought by CSK after all the hue and cry from the fans. Assume that he gets a few chances and is unable to perform and CSK looking at the overall picture will start to give opportunities to other players and the southpaw, in all probability will be benched for the rest of the season. Having a player of Yuvraj's stature, on the bench will not augur well with the dressing room atmosphere.
From Yuvraj's point of view, the IPL teams that should target him will be the ones who require some stability in the middle order and are looking for an experienced Indian batsman. Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore might be the place for him. But, CSK picking Yuvraj will be disastrous for both CSK and Yuvraj.