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CSK-Chennai Super Kings redeemed itself after a dismal performance last year to clinch the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 title but head coach Stephen Fleming still rates the IPL 2018 final win as special and termed it “very emotional”. CSK had now 4 IPL titles besides its name coming in 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021.

CSK, also known as ‘Dad’s Army’, lifted their fourth IPL title on Friday after defeating Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the final by 27 runs. Stephen Fleming said he is very proud to have won the IPL 2021 final since many pundits had written off CSK due to the absence of young blood in the side.

Chennai Super Kings (Image Credit: Twitter)

CSK’s Win In 2018 Was Very Emotional: Stephen Fleming

The likes of Shane Watson (555 runs), Ambati Rayudu (602 runs), Suresh Raina (440 runs), MS Dhoni (455 runs) were unstoppable as CSK won the IPL 2018 after a gap of 7 years. Dwayne Bravo (14 scalps), Shardul Thakur (16 scalps), Lungi Ngidi and Ravindra Jadeja (11 scalps each), and Harbhajan Singh (7 scalps ) did well with the ball in IPL 2018.

“It’s very hard to rate them, they (IPL wins) all are specials as they are results of our hard work. I think the one coming back in 2018 was very emotional but there is a lot of hard work in this one too,” Fleming said during the post-match press conference.

Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo, CSK, Image Source: The Cricket Times

“If you look back when we were called Dad’s Army in the first year (2018), I think a lot of people had no hope from us to maintain the competitiveness during this cycle.There is a satisfaction around and a lot of pride over what players have achieved. There was a challenge with the aging side and I am very proud of what CSK have done and how they have played,” he added.

The likes of Imran Tahir(42 years), MS Dhoni (40 years), Dwayne Bravo(38 years), Faf du Plessis (37 years), Ambati Rayudu (36 years), Robin Uthappa (35 years), Suresh Raina, and Moeen Ali (34 years) are in their fag end of careers and some of them have even quit international cricket.

The four-time champions’ 2020 campaign was disastrous as they could not reach the playoffs for the first time in IPL history. They finished seventh in the rankings and MS Dhoni’s captaincy reign came under question.

CSK’s Head Coach Stephen Fleming Don’t Know Whether It Was An End Of An Era

For IPL 2022, two new teams are set to come in, and it needs to be seen how many players a franchise is allowed to retain before the mega auction. Stephen Fleming knows it will be difficult to retain most CSK players and he is looking forward to seeing how things pan out ahead of the IPL 2022.

“We don’t know (on being asked if this was an end of an era). But we know that whenever we get to the end of the cycle we know that we cannot get some players back,” said Fleming.

Stephen Fleming Image Source : IPLT20.COM — Stephen Fleming Image Source: IPLT20.COM

“CSK always had a system where we maintain players and keep them with you for a long period of time and get the best out of them. It will be interesting to see how things pan out in the next few months. Most teams will have a change in them and we will be one of them,” he added.

In the IPL 2021, the likes of CSK openers Ruturaj Gaikwad (635 runs) and Faf du Plessis (633 runs) stood apart from the rest of CSK’s batsmen and delivered when it was needed. They finished as leading run-getters in IPL 2021. Moeen Ali (357 runs), Ambati Rayudu (257 runs) also delivered in crunch situations. Dwayne Bravo (14), Deepak Chahar(14), Ravindra Jadeja(13), Josh Hazlewood(11), and Shardul Thakur(21) were amongst the wickets.