IPL 2019: Chennai Super Kings' strongest playing XI against Mumbai Indians

Chennai Super Kings was mocked as a team of oldies after the auction in 2018. This was due to the fact that a lot of their players were over 30 years old.

CSK has proved their doubters wrong by winning the IPL last season. The defending champions have started the season brilliantly as they have won three out of three.

While they have a settled team we can always expect some tweaks here and there. Mumbai Indians has not been at their best this season but they don't have a dearth of superstars. CSK need to make sure that they get their team combination right otherwise MI can hurt them.

It would be interesting to see the playing XI of CSK against a team like MI in their own backyard. While MS Dhoni is one of the best tacticians in the world and he rarely gets the selections wrong, this is the strongest CSK XI according to us.

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#1 Top Order (Shane Watson, Ambati Rayudu, and Suresh Raina)

Suresh Raina and Shane Watson (Source: BCCI/IPLT20.com)

While CSK has been brilliant this season, Shane Watson has failed to live up to the standards.

The Australian all-rounder played well in the second match against Delhi Capitals, but apart from that, he has been poor by his own standards. CSK would be hoping that he can perform better against MI.

Ambati Rayudu was impressive in the first match against RCB when he top-scored for CSK on a tough pitch.

Since then the right-handed batsman has been very poor this season. The former MI batsman would be motivated to prove his doubters wrong and hurt his former team in the process.

Suresh Raina is one of the greatest players in the history of the IPL. Mr. IPL has been decent this season but he has failed to convert his starts into big scores. CSK and its fans would want their star to rise to the occasion against MI.

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#2 Middle Order (Faf du Plessis, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav)

Faf Du Plessis - Source: BCCI/IPLT20.com

Faf du Plessis is yet to make an appearance in the IPL this season. The South African captain would be itching to get on the field and would need to make the most of the opportunity in order to retain his place in the team. His experience can help in holding the batting line up together.

MS Dhoni is one of the greatest limited overs batsmen of all time. The CSK captain proved to everyone that age is just a number when he played a brilliant innings against RR when his team was in a spot of bother. His ability to rotate the strike in middle overs and launch a counter at the death makes him great.

Kedar Jadhav is a great utility player in this format of the game. The Indian all-rounder can come up with some big hits in the death overs. His ability to break partnerships with the ball in hand makes him a great option.

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#3 All Rounders(Dwayne Bravo and Ravindra Jadeja)

Bravo and Jadeja - Source: BCCI/IPLT20.com

Dwayne Bravo is one of the legends of this format of the game. The West Indian all-rounder can change any given match with either bat and ball. The right-handed batsman can come with some big hits in the death overs to finish the job done by top and middle order.

MS Dhoni tends to use Bravo in the latter overs as he is brilliant at the death. The right-arm medium pacer has a lot of variations up his sleeve which makes it difficult for batsmen to pick him. He held his nerve against RR when he had to defend 12 runs in the last over of the innings.

Ravindra Jadeja is one of the favorites of Dhoni. The left-arm spinner bowls very accurately which makes it difficult for batsmen to score runs off his bowling. He can also contribute with the bat which makes him a prized asset for any team.

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#4 Bowlers (Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Imran Tahir)

Imran Tahir (Source: BCCI/IPLT20.com)

Not a lot of people are talking about Deepak Chahar, but the fast bowler is having a fantastic season in the IPL.

He has completed his quota in all the matches for CSK in 2019. The fast bowler has given away runs at an economy rate of just 4.33 which is incredible in this format of the game.

Shardul Thakur has struggled to control the flow of runs this season. But he can get another chance as CSK don't have many other Indian pacers to replace him. He needs to raise his game if he wants to maintain his place in the team.

Imran Tahir has been CSK's trump card this season. The South African leg-spinner has delivered in every match this season. The wrist spinner has the ability to pick wickets in the middle overs which hurts the momentum of the batting team.

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