IPL 2021: Aakash Chopra surprised by CSK's turnaround this season 

Aakash Chopra has expressed surprise at the Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) massive turnaround in IPL 2021.

CSK were the first team to get knocked out of the race for a playoff berth in IPL 2020 and eventually finished seventh in the standings. But the MS Dhoni-led outfit staged a grand comeback in IPL 2021 and were placed second in the points table when the tournament was suspended.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra pointed out that CSK were an invigorated lot in IPL 2021.

The cricketer-turned-commentator acknowledged that he did not believe the franchise would be able to stage such a turnaround within a year.

"There was a vast difference between IPL 2020 and IPL 2021. CSK played like a Dad's Army in 2020 and everyone got the superpowers as soon as 2021 came. The kings had become the Super Kings. Such a transformation can happen in six months, I and a lot of my friends had not thought so. But this team showed that," said Chopra.

The inclusion of Moeen Ali and the stability in their batting order played a massive role in CSK's revival in IPL 2021.

100+ Partnerships in 2021 IPL4 - CSK2 - DC2 - PBKS1 - RCB1 - SRH1 - RR#IPL2021

— ComeOn Cricket 🏏🇮🇳 (@ComeOnCricket) May 7, 2021

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"The first thing that has changed for CSK is their six-hitting ability" - Aakash Chopra

Faf du Plessis and Moeen Ali hit a total of 25 sixes for CSK in IPL 2021 [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra picked CSK's improved big-hitting prowess as one of the primary reasons behind their turnaround this season.

"The first thing that has changed for CSK is their six-hitting ability. If we talk about 2020, it is not that they played only in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, they played in Sharjah as well but were not hitting the sixes," said Chopra.

The former Indian batsman admitted he did not believe CSK would make the playoffs in IPL 2021 due to a lack of six-hitting ability in their line-up.

"When the first encounters were in the small Wankhede ground and after that they went to Delhi, it was in our mind that Chennai will be stuck because who will hit the sixes. I thought this team will not qualify because of this reason," added Chopra.

Aakash Chopra signed off by sharing some numbers to substantiate his point.

"If you talk about 2020, CSK was second-last in terms of the number of sixes. They hit a total of 75 sixes and were taking 22 balls to hit a six while the Mumbai Indians were hitting a six every 13.2 balls and hit 137 in total. This year they have played only seven encounters, and have hit 62 sixes, with a six every 13.1 balls," concluded Chopra.

Ambati Rayudu and Faf du Plessis, with 13 sixes each, have cleared the ropes on most occasions for CSK in IPL 2021. They are closely followed by Moeen Ali, who has hit 12 maximums thus far.

This is in sharp contrast to IPL 2020 where the 14 sixes hit by Du Plessis, the most by a CSK batsman, came in almost double the matches.

Most 6s Smashed in 2021 IPL62 - CSK57 - PBKS52 - RR48 - KKR43 - MI43 - RCB43 - SRH32 - DCMost 6s Conceded in 2021 IPL59 - DC50 - CSK50 - RCB50 - RR47 - KKR45 - MI43 - PBKS36 - SRH#IPL2021

— CricBeat (@Cric_beat) May 5, 2021