IPL 2020: Chennai Super Kings' team of the decade
Chennai Super Kings has been the second-most successful team in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL) after the defending champions Mumbai Indians. Winning three titles in ten years speaks volumes of the dominance of the team in this tournament.
CSK has managed to reach the playoffs in each edition of the league and played eight IPL finals out of ten. The Yellow Army are also the only team to successfully defend their IPL title with their successive victories in 2010 and 2011.
Title wins notwithstanding, this team has produced a lot of young stars who made it big in the national team. The likes of R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, and Suresh Raina were immensely benefitted due to their presence and performances in the yellow outfit.
Also see – BPL Most Runs 2020
In the last ten years, despite being banned for two years, CSK was one of the most widely followed IPL franchises. As we approach the end of this decade, it is fitting to take a look back at certain players who performed consistently for Chennai throughout the past ten years and will walk into the CSK team of the decade.
#1. Openers: Mike Hussey and Murali Vijay
The Australian middle-order batsman, Mike Hussey was a regular for CSK at the top of the order during the early half of this decade. Hussey was a consistent performer for the Chennai-based franchise and was even a part of the two title-winning teams in 2010 and 2011. His opening partnership in 2011, alongside Murali Vijay, was an instant hit as the duo helped CSK defend the title.
Since 2010, Hussey scored 1600 runs in 46 appearances for the franchise with a personal best of 95. The southpaw was also the Orange Cap holder in IPL 2013, scoring 733 runs for CSK in the entire edition. In his debut game in the IPL, the left-handed batsman became only the second player to score a century in the league against Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2008.
Murali Vijay was one of the local boys who was picked by CSK during the initial editions of the league. However, Vijay failed to make an impact in his first year at the IPL in 2009.
But it was from 2010 onwards that he hit a golden patch in the IPL, making the opening slot his own to become CSK's backbone for the next few years. He was a bank at the top for CSK between the period 2010-2013 before he was finally released in the IPL auction.
Since 2010, Vijay has played 63 matches for his home-based franchise, accumulating 1616 runs including 7 fifties and two hundreds. His highest score of 127 in IPL 2010, saw him carve out an image of an attacking batsman at the world stage.