Match 22 between the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) is ready to begin at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. In this pivotal match, CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad won the toss and chose to bowl first. CSK had to alter their starting lineup somewhat going into the match because they had lost their previous two games.
Discomfort forced the five-time champions to sit seam all-rounder Deepak Chahar. With just four wickets taken in as many games at an average of 34.75 and an economy of 9.16, the 31-year-old hasn’t had a particularly successful season thus far.
The CSK team management brought in Shardul Thakur as a like-for-like replacement for Chahar, who will play in the first game of the season. In addition to Chahar, Sri Lankan speedster Matheesha Pathirana was once more sidelined by CSK due to an injury, which also prevented him from participating in the most recent match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH).
Also read: IPL 2024: Michael Clarke urges other CSK hitters to take MS Dhoni’s place as the “finisher.”
In the first two games of the season, the 21-year-old has claimed four wickets at an economy of 7.50 and an average of 15. He took three wickets in four overs, giving up 31 runs, making him the most effective bowler in their match against the Delhi Capitals (DC).
The good news for CSK was that their left-arm seamer, Mustafizur Rahman, was eligible for selection, despite a couple of ailments. The 28-year-old, who was eager to play in the T20 World Cup in 2024, had to fly to Bangladesh in order to complete his US visa, which meant he missed the final match.
The playing lineup for KKR remained unchanged.
Along with Mustafizur and Thakur, CSK also included right-hand batsman Sameer Rizvi in the lineup. Rizvi’s IPL journey began spectacularly when he hit two sixes off of Rashid Khan. As they are riding high on their winning momentum after winning all three of their matches thus far, KKR made no changes before the encounter.
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