Chennai Super Kings' so-called Dad's Army is now another year older in IPL 2020: Scott Styris

Former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris has opined that the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) might find it difficult in IPL 2020, considering that their senior players are ageing and have not played much cricket in the recent past.

Scott Styris made this observation during an interaction about Chennai Super Kings' chances in the upcoming IPL in the Star Sports show Game Plan.

The former Chennai Super Kings player was asked how good the franchise is looking this year. He responded that there are many reasons due to which IPL 2020 could pose to be the biggest test in MS Dhoni's stint as the CSK captain.

"I think in my mind this is the toughest challenge that MS Dhoni would have faced in his tenure at Chennai Super Kings and it is on many fronts."

Scott Styris observed that the primary concern for MS Dhoni could be that he himself has not played cricket for a long while, and added that age might finally be catching up with the talismanic skipper much to the dismay of his fans.

"One individually he has not played a lot of cricket, he is getting a little older, Father Time is catching up, which is sad for all of us cricket fans."

The Kiwi mentioned that MS Dhoni would have to ensure that he is at the top of his game and is fully prepared for the prestigious tournament.

"So, he has to make sure that his own game is under control and that his preparation is right. So he has got that to worry about."

#IPL2020 Brad Hogg believes that even though the trio of MS Dhoni, AB De Villiers and Chris Gayle are legends of the game, they are a ‘little bit too old’ for IPL 2020. #MSDhoni #ChrisGayle #ABDevilliers #Cricket https://t.co/8dhHWrGzPh

— India Today Sports (@ITGDsports) September 14, 2020

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Scott Styris on the other concerns for MS Dhoni and the Chennai Super Kings

Some of Chennai Super Kings' star players like Shane Watson have not played cricket for a while

Scott Styris highlighted the positive COVID tests in the Chennai Super Kings' camp, apart from Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh's absence from IPL 2020, as some of the setbacks suffered by the franchise recently.

"Then the dramas of CSK, firstly with the positive tests and then Raina and Harbhajan leaving the group."

He signed off by observing that the senior members of the Chennai Super Kings' squad, referred to as the Dad's army by certain quarters, is also a year older in IPL 2020 with not much competitive cricket behind them.

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"Now he has got some uncertainty, he has got an older group. Every year we talk about Dad's army, the thing is that they are now another year older and all of those players haven't played a lot of cricket."

Apart from MS Dhoni, some of the other senior members in the Chennai Super Kings squad like Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Murali Vijay and Kedar Jadhav have not played competitive cricket for a long while.

This could prove to be a stumbling block for the Chennai-based franchise in their quest for a record-equalling fourth IPL title.

.@ChennaiIPL defied the belief that T20 is a young man's game, relying on players in their mid-30s and making it to the finals 🏏Can their experienced players still deliver? 🤔

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) September 15, 2020