In the lead-up to the IPL 2023 mini-auction, the majority predicted an unbelievable sum and had England all-rounder Sam Curran back in the Chennai Super Kings lineup.
Although Curran became the most expensive player ever at the auction in Kochi on Friday, CSK had been unable to secure his services. However, Ben Stokes was acquired by the four-time champions for a staggering INR 16.25 crore. Experts and fans questioned whether Stokes had been chosen to succeed MS Dhoni as captain shortly after bringing in the England Test skipper. Later, CSK CEO Kasi Viswanath broke his silence on the captaincy problem and disclosed Dhoni’s response to Stokes joining the team.
CSK engaged in a fierce bidding war with four other teams to get Stokes after failing to sign Curran and later West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder. The England star surpassed all previous IPL auction players to rank third in terms of price.
After a tumultuous bidding day in Kochi, where 80 players were sold for a total of INR 167 crore, the CSK CEO discussed Dhoni’s response to playing alongside Stokes for the second time in the IPL as well as the franchise’s leadership attitude.
CSK CEO was very elated after winning Stokes in the auction. He said, “Very excited to get Stokes and we were lucky also because he came up at the end. We wanted an allrounder and MS was very happy that we got Stokes. The captaincy option is there but it’s a call MS will take with time. Kyle Jamieson was injured so maybe many others didn’t look at him. We had information from Fleming that he had recovered and was raring to go. CSK looks bright and I hope we do well this season. We follow the process always and that will help us do well.”
Before the IPL 2022 season began, Dhoni resigned as captain, installing Ravindra Jadeja as the new captain. However, CSK was left floundering at the bottom of the standings, and Jadeja was also under pressure. Dhoni was consequently compelled to assume the captaincy position as well.
