Though Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Kasi Viswanathan may had said that MS Dhoni might play the Indian Premier League (IPL) for another season, question still looms large in every cricket fans’ mind as to who will replace the charismatic leader after he decides to hang his boots.
Former England captain Michael Vaughan believes all-rounedr Ravindra Jadeja should be the cricketer that CSK should ‘build their team around’ after Dhoni departs.
Jadeja, who took four catches and also turned the game towards CSK by picking up two important wickets – Jos Buttler and Shivam Dube – against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2021 match in Mumbai on Monday, has been an integral part of the CSK team since IPL 2012.
Vaughan said Jadeja’s all-round abilities make him the front-runner to be Dhoni’s successor in CSK.
“You may say that Dhoni will play for 2-3 more years but let’s be honest, he’s not gonna play a great deal after that. So you’ve got to start looking at who you can build a team around and to me, Ravindra Jadeja is the kind of cricketer that I would build my team around. I just think he’s that good with the ball, in the field, with the bat in hand, his mindset, his mentality is very good,” said Vaughan on Cricbuzz.
“Jadeja for me is the kind of player to whom you can say ‘You’re gonna bat at No.4 or 5, get in there early. We might even open the bowling with you, depending on who is batting We’ll put you in key fielding positions.’ He is ready for that. I think he is that good a cricketer,” he added.
Meanwhile, England all-rounder Sam Curran has been a consistent performer for the Yellow Brigade since the last season and Vaughan said that though there were talks that CSK might think about building a team around Curran after Dhoni hangs his boots, the England all-rounder is too young and inexperienced for the role.
“We were talking the other that are they (CSK) trying to build a team around Sam Curran but I think Sam’s too young and he’s not quite ready for that kind of mantle yet. 4-5 years down the line maybe but I think Sam Curran’s a better cricketer when he is under the radar. Just let him be. Don’t need to put too much pressure on him, he’ll deliver,” Vaughan opined.
CSK are currently placed at the second spot in the eight-team standings.