Former India cricketer Laxman Sivaramakrishnan believes Suresh Raina’s absence from IPL 2020 will leave CSK hurting but they can replace him with England all-rounder Sam Curran. Southpaw Raina, who had travelled with the squad to UAE had later decided to skip the IPL and returned home citing ‘personal reasons’.
Suresh Raina has been a very important part of CSK’s success in the IPL winning three titles. He is the league’s second-highest run-scorer and will be missed deeply in this impending campaign. After the announcement of 13 members of the CSK squad turning COVID-19 positive was revealed, shortly after which Raina decided to leave the camp.
Sam Curran can bat at No. 3: Laxman Sivaramakrishnan
The former Indian cricketer Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, sees Sam Curran as the perfect replacement for Raina. He says the southpaw could be sent at 3rd number and could score important runs for the team. The England all-rounder made his IPL debut last year for KXIP, playing nine matches and scoring 95 and took 10 wickets. CSK brought him for INR 5.5 crores in the auction in December 2019.
“In T20s, most teams employ leg-spinners to trouble the right-handers. But then, a left-hander could negotiate with leggies easily. So the loss of such an established batsman like Raina would hurt CSK,” Sivaramakrishnan told the Times of India.
“But they have a utility player in Curran and could send the southpaw up the order. He can bat at No. 3 and give CSK those useful runs. Over the years, we have also seen Dhoni preferring left-arm pacers. Curran can come in handy since he can swing the ball in the air and is a very enthusiastic fielder,” Siva added.
CSK’ s worries ever since landing in UAE
The CSK squad have got a few worries since they’ve reached UAE, with the first being 13 members of the staff testing positive, which has increased their initial quarantine to 7 more days. This further delays their training program for the IPL and they will now get lesser time to train than their rivals. The second scare was Raina deciding to go back home leaving the camp due to personal reasons.
The IPL 2020 will be played between September 19 and November 10. The venue this time is UAE and matches will be played in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah respectively.