“Stay safe, my Chennai!” – CSK’s Matheesha Pathirana & others from cricket fraternity react to Cyclone Michaung

Several cricketers, including Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) Matheesha Pathirana, Dinesh Karthik and Ravichandran Ashwin reacted as cyclone Michaung hit the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu, including Chennai, on Monday (December 4) and left parts of the city inundated.

Heavy rains led to severe waterlogging in Chennai. Several areas were completely submerged, which further led to power cuts in the low-lying areas and disruption of normal, day-to-day life.

As many as 11 express trains from Chennai Central were cancelled as the water level moved beyond the danger mark. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams have been deployed because of the cyclone.

As per the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), the heavy rainfall is likely to continue for the next 24 hours. They released a statement, which read

“Cyclone is likely to move north-northwestwards, intensify and cross between Nellore and Mchilipatnam close to Baptala during forenoon of 5 December.”

Several cricketers took to X (formerly Twitter) to urge people to stay indoors amid the natural disaster.

Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik wrote on X:

“Chennai folks, please prioritize your safety and stay indoors - it's crucial during times like these. A big salute to all the officials working tirelessly to improve the situation. Let's all cooperate and get through this together.”

CSK pacer Pathirana also shared a video and captioned the post:

“Stay safe, my Chennai! The storm may be fierce, but our resilience is stronger. Better days are just around the corner. Take care, stay indoors, and look out for one another.”

Ravichandran Ashwin wrote on X:

“Looks grim! With all the hours of rain predicted.”

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Ravichandran Ashwin, Dinesh Karthik and Matheesha Pathirana retained by their respective teams ahead of IPL 2024 auction

Ravichandran Ashwin, Dinesh Karthik and Matheesha Pathirana were all retained by their respective franchises, namely Rajasthan Royals (RR), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), respectively, ahead of IPL 2024 auction.

These franchises will enter the auction with ₹14.4 crore (RR), ₹23.25 crore (RCB) and ₹31.4 crore (CSK) purses, respectively.

Remaining purse for each franchise:

GT – ₹38.15 crore

SRH – ₹34 crore

KKR – ₹32.7 crore

CSK – ₹31.4 crore

PBKS – ₹29.1 crore

DC – ₹28.95 crore

RCB – ₹23.25 crore

MI – ₹17.75 crore

RR – ₹14.5 crore

LSG – ₹13.15 crore

Click here to check out the list of retained players for IPL 2024.