Chennai Super Kings seamer Mukesh Choudhary is a questionable starter for the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) as he is currently recovering from a back injury at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. Confirmation as to whether the left-back will miss part of the tournament has not yet come. The 26-year-old had gone to the CSK preparation camp in Chennai earlier this month before leaving for NCA. The timetable for his return from injury is not yet clear.
Mukesh last played a competitive cricket match in December 2022 for Maharashtra in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the country’s top 50-over domestic tournament, in Ahmedabad.
This injury has put another dent in CSK’s title hopes. Their seam attack has already lost New Zealand speedy Kyle Jamieson, who is also recovering from a back injury. Pace spearhead Deepak Chahar is also working his way back from injury. In-form lead-off hitter Ruturaj Gaikwad is also injured and recovering. All-rounder Shiva Dube is also recovering from an injury sustained during practice sessions for the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Sri Lankan bowling pair Maheesh Theekshana and Matheesha Pathirana will also miss some CSK action initially. Their national commitments, which include a six-game white-ball series against New Zealand, end on April 8.
Choudhary’s absence leaves CSK without a left arm on their team. In the last IPL season, he was one of the biggest finds as he emerged as the team’s joint highest wicket-taker, taking 16 scalps in 13 matches at an economy rate of 9.31. Eleven of these wickets came in the power play, the most taken by a bowler at this stage of the match in the tournament.
Simarjeet Singh of Delhi and Tushar Deshpande of Mumbai, who recently bagged the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title, are the reserve tempo bowling options for Super Kings.
CSK will play their first IPL 2023 match against Gujarat Titans on March 31, which also happens to be the opener of the tournament.
The four-time champions will play their first match at the home arena of MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on April 3 against Lucknow Super Giants.
Last year, CSK finished in ninth place in the points table, having won just four of their 14 games and collecting just eight points.
Chennai Super Kings: Squad strength 25 players (Overseas 8)
Players Bought in IPL Auction 2023 – Ajinkya Rahane (INR 50 lakh), Ben Stokes (INR 16.25 crore), Shaik Rasheed (INR 20 lakh), Nishant Sindhu (INR 60 lakh), Kyle Jamieson (INR 1 crore), Ajay Mandal (INR 20 lakh), Bhagath Varma (INR 20 lakh)
Players Retained – MS Dhoni (c), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, Subhranshu Senapati, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Dwaine Pretorius, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Chowdhary, Matheesha Pathirana, Simarjeet Singh , Deepak Chahar, Prashant Solanki, Maheesh Theekshana.
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