Chennai Super Kings (CSK) crowned champions in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the sixth time when they lifted the cup in 2023 by beating Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final. But now, they will be focusing more on whom to retain and release for the next season.
There were players, who, owing to their inconsistency would fail to don the yellow jersey next year. Then some did not get the chance at all to feature in the XI and CSK might think of them as an extra player. Their main focus will be on strengthing their bowling department as the bowlers have leaked far too many runs.
In this article, let’s look at four such players whom CSK should release before the IPL 2024 auction.
4 Players CSK should release before IPL 2024
- Sisanda Magala
The 32-year-old South Africa pacer was roped in by CSK as a replacement for an injured Kyle Jamieson and joined the team at his base price of INR 50 lakh. He played just two matches and bagged one wicket at an economy of 8.50 before he picked up an injury while fielding against Rajasthan Royals (RR) which ruled him out for a couple of weeks. Next year, between Jamieson and Magala, CSK will definitely go for the Kiwi pacer.
- Akash Singh
Akash Singh came in as a replacement for an injured Mukesh Choudhary who spent his time at the National Cricket Academy after picking up a back injury. Akash previously donned Rajasthan Royals (RR) jersey and was part of India’s U-19 World Cup team in 2020.
Though Akash played six matches this season with five wickets, if Choudhary makes a comeback next season, he will be preferred over Akash based on his IPL 2022 performance where he picked up 16 wickets in 13 games.
- Ambati Rayudu
This is the easiest pick as the CSK veteran batter announced his decision to retire after the IPL 2023 final. The 16th edition was not Rayudu’s best as he delivered a lackluster performance, scoring just 142 runs at an average of 15.78. Though the stats regarding his game is irrelevant due to his retirement, it will be interesting to see whether he makes a comeback to the side with a different role.
- Ben Stokes
Well, this came as a surprise pick but the English all-rounder has not lived to up the expectations. A knee injury marred his IPL 2023 run due to which he played just two games.
At the same time, there were discussions among the fans that signing Ben Stokes may fill the captaincy gap after MS Dhoni’s retirement. But his inconsistency in IPL itself can be a reason apart from his fetching a whopping 16.25 if CSK wants to release him. Even before the 2023 IPL, there was discussion surrounding Stokes’ position based on team composition. There are already two all-rounders- Ravindra Jadeja and Moeen Ali who cannot be missed.
In case you missed!
