"CSK's biggest home advantage is their crowd" - Harbhajan Singh ahead of IPL 2023

Former Indian cricketer and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) off-spinner Harbhajan Singh believes the crowd at Chepauk will be a huge boost for the home side in the IPL 2023 season.

MS Dhoni and co. will finally be back at their fortress in Chennai after four long years and the fans will certainly be filling the stadium in numbers for all their home games.

Speaking exclusively to Star Sports, Harbhajan Singh explained the impact that the Chepauk crowd has whenever CSK plays in Chennai. He said:

“The biggest strength of this team is MS Dhoni. He knows the team very well and he is probably the best person to get the most out of each player in the team. CSK's biggest home advantage is their crowd, which boosts the morale of the team. The CSK crowd is such that even if the team loses or wins they will always back them.”

Harbhajan also claimed that all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja will have a crucial season for Chennai this time around. On this, the former cricketer added:

“The one person who everyone should keep an eye on is Ravindra Jadeja, especially how he bats for CSK. He may be promoted up the order plus he has his four overs. If you look at it from a world cricket perspective, I don't think there's a better all-rounder than him.

"The X factor for me will be Ravindra Jadeja because he has been very successful in these conditions as a bowler and a batsman, he’s been playing there for so many years.”

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Harbhajan Singh on CSK's overseas players

Harbhajan Singh also gave his opinion on who the four overseas players would be in the playing XI for the Chennai Super Kings in the upcoming season. According to him, all-rounders Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali, as well as opener Devon Conway, would be sure starters.

Among the overseas bowlers, Harbhajan claimed that the choice would change according to the conditions. On this, he stated:

“Firstly I would select Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali ofcourse, Conway will definitely be in the side and Theekshana, before Pathirana because Theekshana will be more effective in Chennai. But if the match happens in a place like Mumbai, against Mumbai Indians, then I will select Pathirana because he bowls a lot like Malinga and spin doesn’t play a big factor over there.”

The Super Kings will open their IPL 2023 campaign on March 31 in Ahmedabad against the Gujarat Titans.