IPL 2018: How MS Dhoni's men may lineup on their return

Chennai Super Kings will return to the IPL fold in 2018 after a two-year suspension. CSK have the largest fan-base in the IPL, and a quick glance at the result table would explain much of it. The Super Kings have reached the finals in 6 of their 8 attempts, have been crowned champions twice (2010, 2011), runner-up on four separate occasions (2008, 2012, 2013, 2015) and lost at the semi-final stage on the other two occasions (2009, 2014).

CSK retained MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja from their 2015 squad, and had a budget of ₹ 47 crores going to the mega-auction. CSK were criticized heavily for their auction strategy; one which saw them buy a whole host of players who are at the fag end of their careers such as Shane Watson, Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir etc.

A look at the CSK squad makes it that clear that a reboot would be required in a couple of years, but it would be foolhardy to write CSK off in this year's competition.

Nobody understands the T20 game better than the duo of Stephen Fleming and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and it should come as no surprise if the two manage to weave their magic once again.

For all the consistency talk around CSK, it is worth noting that CSK have not won the IPL title since 2011, and would be itching to get their hands on the trophy again.

The biggest challenge for any team is to get the playing combination right, and while there is still some time to find out what the management decides, it is never a bad time to make one's own pick.

Following is a look at what the best XI for the fan favourites could look like:

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#1 Shane Watson (Australia): All-Rounder

Shane Watson is arguably the greatest T20 cricketer, and his IPL feats are reflective of that. Watson has been Man of the Tournament on two separate occasions and is capable of winning the match with both bat and ball on any given day.

Over the past couple of years, Watson's form has been very patchy, and a massive reason for that has been the constant shuffle in his batting position. Watson thrives at the top of the order and if CSK is to have any success in this year's IPL, Shane Watson needs to be opening the batting.

The Chennai surface would suit Watson's playing style very well. He can tonk the spinners from the crease, and his bowling becomes all the more effective on a sluggish surface.

Shane Watson has had a fantastic PSL and would love to carry that form in the IPL as well. Watson is on his last legs as a professional cricketer, and would love to go out on a high in the IPL; a tournament that has shaped his career more than anything else.

IPL Record:

Matches: 101, Runs: 2620, Average: 31.57, Strike-Rate: 138.77, 100/50: 2/14.

Wickets: 85, Average: 28.21.

#2 Faf du Plessis (South Africa): Batsman

Faf du Plessis is one of the best T20 batsmen in the world and would form the core of any team he is a part of. But such has been the riches of CSK that Du Plessis has been terribly underused on their part.

CSK recognizes the value that Du Plessis brings to the table, thereby using an RTM to bring him back to their side. Faf Du Plessis would be the glue around which the CSK batting revolves; a role that Michael Hussey played with aplomb for many years.

Du Plessis has scored 1295 runs in the IPL at an average of 30.12 and would be hoping to add to that tally. Faf is a fantastic fielder as well, capable of winning matches with his fielding skills only.

IPL Record:

Matches: 53, Runs: 1295, Average: 30.12, Strike-Rate: 127.96, 100/50: 0/8.

#3 Suresh Raina (India): Batsman

Suresh Raina will play for the Chennai Super Kings in this year's IPL, and the tournament is better for it. There were some doubts about Raina and CSK, but they were quickly dispelled when the franchise retained him before the auction.

Raina is the leading run-scorer in the IPL with 4540 runs to his name and is just a different beast when playing for the CSK franchise. Raina will bat at No.3, from where he can control the innings for his team.

Most of Raina's success in the T20 format has come from batting at No.3 and would hope that the trend continues for him. Raina has made it back to the Indian T20 team and would like to further cement his claim using this year's IPL.

Raina's partnership with Dhoni is the stuff of legends. CSK and its fans would be hoping that the duo can recreate their magic once again.

Raina is a gun fielder and is a decent off-spin bowler as well. His tally of 25 wickets being proof of that.

IPL Record:

Matches: 162, Runs: 4540, Average: 34.14, Strike-Rate: 139.09, 100/50: 1/34.

Wickets: 25, Average: 45.56.

#4 MS Dhoni (India): Wicket-Keeper (Captain)

From a purely cricketing point of view, it made little sense for CSK to retain MS Dhoni, he is less than half of the cricketer that he used to be, and often loses you matches that you should otherwise win. But, CSK are coming back from a suspension, and not having MS Dhoni in their ranks would have been a disaster of sorts for them.

Dhoni has a fantastic IPL record, but the numbers have been on a steady decline for the past few years. Dhoni's best bet is to bat at No.4 where he can give himself some time to settle in before going all guns blazing in the final few overs.

Dhoni is the captain of the team and would be under tremendous pressure to get the job done. His heart was clearly not in it when he played for the Pune franchise, CSK would be hoping that Dhoni can re-discover some of his old magic for them.

IPL Record:

Matches: 159, Runs: 3560, Average: 37.87, Strike-Rate: 136.71, 100/50: 0/17.

#5 Ambati Rayadu (India): Batsman

After eight seasons with Mumbai Indians, Ambati Rayadu will represent CSK in this year's IPL. Rayadu has scored 2416 runs in the IPL and played a crucial role in turning Mumbai's fortunes around post the first couple of seasons.

Rayadu is capable of batting at different positions in the batting order. Rayadu would play the role of a finisher in this team, but can easily move up the order if required. Rayudu is a decent wicket-keeper as well.

Ambati Rayadu makes it ahead of Kedar Jadhav in this batting unit. One of the major reasons for Jadhav's inclusion in the side is his bowling, but this team does not require additional bowling choices, and Rayadu is the more pedigreed batsman.

Rayadu has a phenomenal record playing for India as well but has sadly been overlooked. The Indian middle order has a couple of slots available, and Rayadu would be hoping to make a claim for that position in this year's tournament.

IPL Record:

Matches: 114, Runs: 2416, Average: 27.15, Strike-Rate: 126.16, 100/50: 0/14.

#6 Dwayne Bravo (West Indies): All-Rounder

T20 cricket is played between two teams and at the end, Dwayne Bravo is the champion. Whether it is choking the opposition in the middle overs or taking wickets at the back end, Bravo has mastered the art of bowling in T20 cricket like no one else. Bravo has over 400 T20 wickets to his name, and his IPL record is equally impressive having taken 122 wickets at an average of 22.

Bravo has been plagued by injuries over the past couple of years, but he remains a crucial part of CSK's plans as they used an RTM to get him back on their side.

Bravo will be the leader of the Super Kings bowling attack, and while his batting has gone down considerably, he is still capable of playing useful cameos down the order.

Bravo is an incredible athlete, add to it his natural flair and you have the complete T20 cricketer if there ever was one.

IPL Record:

Matches: 106, Runs: 1295, Average: 22.95, Strike-Rate: 126.33, 100/50: 0/4.

Wickets: 122, Average: 22.58.

#7 Ravindra Jadeja (India): All-Rounder

It was the 2008 IPL that shot Ravindra Jadeja into fame, and 10 years later Jadeja finds himself out of depth as a limited over's cricketer. For a long time, Jadeja was the quintessential T20 cricketer, but his inability to take wickets has come back to haunt him.

The CSK management believes in Jadeja's ability as they retained him for ₹ 7 crores. Ravindra Jadeja has pretty modest numbers in the IPL, and quite surprisingly has not yet scored a fifty in the tournament.

Jadeja is one of the best fielders in the world, and makes the starting XI for CSK easily. Whether he can continue in the team would depend on his form, which seems iffy at best. If Jadeja can re-discover his old form, he would be a handful and would go a long way in making Chennai viable contenders.

IPL Record:

Matches: 138, Runs: 1730, Average: 24.03, Strike-Rate: 123.03, 100/50: 0/0.

Wickets: 80, Average: 31.33.

#8 Karn Sharma (India): All-Rounder

Karn Sharma was snapped by the Chennai Super Kings for a hefty price of ₹ 5 crores in the mega-auction. Karn has played for 3 different teams in the IPL with varying amount of success, but his association with CSK might be the lucky break he needs.

A right-arm leg-spinner, Karn has a decent record in the IPL having taken 49 wickets at an average of 27. The Chennai surface is tailor-made for spin bowling, and Karn would enjoy playing on it. Also, there is no better skipper for spin bowlers than MS Dhoni and Karn has himself stated that he is excited to be playing under Dhoni's captaincy.

Karn is a decent batsman as well who can come in, and slog a few hefty ones at the end of the innings. Karn is not the most fancied name in this team sheet, but he is a match-winner on his day and his form will dictate whether CSK do well in this tournament or not.

IPL Record

Matches: 56, Runs: 317, Average: 15.10, Strike-Rate: 115.67.

Wickets: 49, Average: 27.

#9 Harbhajan Singh (India): Bowler

One of the most intriguing storylines going into the 2018 IPL auction involved Harbhajan Singh, and which team he would end up with. The result did not disappoint as Harbhajan Singh was bagged by the Chennai Super Kings.

After 10 seasons with the Mumbai Indians, Harbhajan Singh will now play for, and most likely finish his career with the Chennai Super Kings. There is a lot to criticize the IPL auctions, but this kind of stuff makes it all worthwhile.

Off-spinners are struggling for relevancy in the T20 format, but not Harbhajan Singh. He will bowl his quota of overs meagerly and would give you the odd wicket here and there. Harbhajan is equally adept at bowling in the powerplay as well as the death.

The only thing that this Chennai team is short of is power hitters, and Harbhajan solves that as well. Harbhajan can swing from ball 1, and if used adequately can turn around some matches for the Super Kings.

IPL Record

Matches: 136, Runs: 799, Average; 16.31, Strike-Rate: 142.42, 100/50: 0/1.

Wickets: 127, Average: 26.78.

#10 Shardul Thakur (India): Bowler

Shardul Thakur has been around for a fairly long time, but it was only last year that he shot to fame. Thakur was one of the key players for Rising Pune supergiant as they made the IPL final. He played 12 matches, picking up 11 wickets at an average of 28.

Since then, Thakur has gone on and represented India in the shorter formats, and is growing in stature rapidly. Shardul is predominantly a swing bowler who is fairly capable of bowling at the death as well.

The 2018 IPL is Shardul's opportunity to prove that he can lead an attack at this level. CSK does not possess a big stock of Indian fast bowlers and would be hoping that Shardul steps up and delivers big for them. If he manages to do so, it would become difficult to deny him a place at the international level.

IPL Record

Matches: 13, Wickets: 12, Average: 29.42, Best: 3/19, Economy: 8.19.

#11 Lungisani Ngidi (South Africa): Bowler

Chennai Super Kings have always been a team that has been reliant on their spin bowlers to do the job for them. The wicket in Chennai suits slow bowling, and the heat makes it extremely difficult for the faster men to function properly. Yet, it is the fast men that have been more crucial for Chennai's success all these years.

Chennai have always boasted of some quality fast bowlers in Makhaya Ntini, Albie Morkel, Doug Bollinger, Ben Hilfenhaus etc. The recent addition to this list is Lungi Ngidi.

The memes regarding Ngidi and CSK are out in full flow, but make no mistake Ngidi is the real deal. He has had a fantastic start to his Test career and took a 6 wicket haul against India in his debut test. Lungi is capable of bowling in the high 140s and can get the ball to rear from a length. Ngidi also possesses a fantastic record in T20 cricket, having taken 43 wickets at an average of 19.

Ngidi pips Mark Wood for a spot in the CSK XI. While Wood is a skiddy bowler, Ngidi can bowl the heavy bowl and also possesses a strong head on his shoulder.

T20 Record:

Matches: 39, Wickets: 43, Average: 19.41, Best: 4/14, Economy: 7.23.