The last few months have not been ideal for India’s Suresh Raina. The southpaw looked completely out of sorts in the World T20 and his numbers portray a sorry tale about him. However, as the carnival of cricket, in the form of the IPL is about to commence, Raina would be eager to strike form and be back at his best. In a recent interview with TOI, Raina admitted that leaving behind his Chennai Super Kings (CSK) family won’t be easy as he was associated with the now disbanded franchise for 8 years. He opened up on the issue in an interview. Below are the excerpts from his interview.
How difficult is it going to be playing for another franchise after eight years?
It’s not been easy and it’s not going to be easy on us (CSK teammates) anytime soon either. It’s like leaving one family and going to another. No matter how much love you get in this new family, how can you let go of all the love you received over the last eight years from the Chennai family. The city had become a second home to all of us. Ek ghar mein aath saal rahe ho, ab bola, jaa kiss doosre ghar mein do saal raho). It’s not easy.
CSK players will be pitted against CSK players when Rajkot and Pune clash.
Yeah, and trust me it’s going to be a great contest. We’ve all been through tough situations, won handsomely, felt disappointed after losses and built a great connect. We all understand each other well – strengths, weaknesses etc. So, it’s going to be interesting and emotional.
To top it, you’re now the captain…
That’s the easy part. Captaincy makes your life easy in a tournament like the IPL. Most are senior international professionals, some international captains. Most know how exactly to go about their tasks. Once you get to know your best eleven, you begin to settle down. And with the kind of coaching staff we’re putting together, we will be on track to give our best. That’s exactly how we went about with our cricket in CSK.
The CSK crux has moved to Rajkot barring MS Dhoni…
The core of CSK has assembled in Gujarat. To top it, we have Brad Hodge as a coach, a real uncanny brain in this format. He’s done really well for Rajasthan Royals and Adelaide Strikers.
Gujarat Lions looks like a strong side. The tournament is yet to begin and your side is being touted as favourites.
I guess it’s the Chennai Super Kings effect. There are so many from CSK here. Yes, the team looks very good, it’s a great mix. All of us are just about beginning to get together. Some have already reached Rajkot, the rest are on their way. Brendon McCullum, James Faulkner, Dwayne Bravo, Aaron Finch, Dwayne Smith add to the batting might. In fact, in Faulkner, we have such a good all-rounder. There’s Ravindra Jadeja who is around too.