Chennai Super Kings release Stokes, Pretorius among other players: Analysis
Chennai Super Kings won the Indian Premier League last season and have held on to their core ahead of the upcoming auction on December 19. They have released only eight players, out of which four are foreign stars. CSK announced their list of retained players on November 26. They already have the winning formula and will make a few additions to fine-tune their team.
A look at the released players
The players released by CSK ahead of the IPL 2024 auction: Ben Stokes, Dwaine Pretorius, K Bhagath Varma, Subhranshu Senapati, Ambati Rayudu, Kyle Jamieson, Akash Singh, and Sisanda Magala. They have not been involved in any trade deals as of now. CSK will be heading into the auction with a salary cap of Rs. 31.4 crore. They have six available slots (three overseas).
Ben Stokes opted out of IPL 2024
Before CSK released him, Stokes had already announced that he would be unavailable for the upcoming 2024 IPL. He wants to manage his workload and fitness after featuring in a grueling 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup. Stokes was bought by CSK for Rs. 16.25 crore but only played two matches last season as he dealt with a troublesome knee issue throughout the tournament.
List of retained players by CSK
List of retained players: MS Dhoni, Moeen Ali, Deepak Chahar, Devon Conway, Tushar Deshpande, Shivam Dube, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajay Mandal, Mukesh Choudhary, Matheesha Pathirana, Ajinkya Rahane, Shaik Rasheed, Mitchell Santner, Simarjeet Singh, Nishant Sindhu, Prashant Solanki, and Maheesh Theekshana.
MS Dhoni will feature in IPL 2024
Dhoni won his fifth IPL trophy as CSK's captain last season. He shared that he may return for another year for his fans, and now that has been confirmed with CSK's retention list. This will be Dhoni's 15th IPL season as the captain of CSK. He has guided them to 12 playoffs while winning the trophy in 2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, and 2023.
A look at the highlights
CSK have released both Jamieson and his injury replacement Magala, who also got injured later in the season. Pretorius, who was bought by CSK in 2022, featured in only seven IPL matches, claiming six wickets and scoring 77 runs. He played only one match last season and hence was surplus to requirements. Meanwhile, Rayudu had retired after winning his sixth IPL trophy last season.
What do CSK need?
CSK have a decent budget to make a few hefty signings even after maintaining their winning core from last season. They need a foreign pacer to fill the void left by Magala, Jamieson, and Pretorius. CSK may go for someone like Gerald Coetzee or Josh Hazlewood. They may also fancy someone like Daryl Mitchell to provide more options in the middle, replacing Stokes.
