Chennai Super Kings (CSK), which has struggled to get going in this IPL edition, was dealt a massive blow as all-rounder Dwayne Bravo has been ruled out of the tournament with a groin injury. The side, captained by MS Dhoni, has very slim chances of advancing to the play-offs.
The 37-year-old Bravo, an integral part of the CSK team for years now, couldn't bowl the final over against Delhi Capitals in a match in Sharjah on October 17. Skipper MS Dhoni was forced to bowl Ravindra Jadeja, who conceded three sixes.
"Dwayne Bravo is ruled out of the IPL due to a groin injury," CSK CEO Kashi Viswanathan told PTI. Bravo played six games and scored only seven runs in two innings. However, he got six wickets in as many games with an economy rate of 8.57.
CSK's campaign has already been derailed after seven losses from 10 games. They are currently lying at the bottom of the league table.
Chennai Super Kings were already hamstrung by absence of senior players Suresh Raina and Harbhajan Singh, both of whom pulled out citing personal reasons. The poor form of some of the senior players like skipper Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav has also hurt their cause.
Despite Chennai Super Kings (CSK) struggling to put up a winning combination and their middle-order batting failing, the franchise has decided not to use the mid-season transfer window to bring in fresh players. Apart from CSK, neither Mumbai Indians (MI) nor the injury-hit Delhi Capitals (DC) have used the window.
The main reason why teams have been reluctant to use the mid-season transfer window is because it doesn't allow a team to pit the loaned player against his parent team. Also, the player loaned out must return to the parent franchise for the next season. This year the Board of Control for Cricket in India has allowed capped players too, to feature in the mid-season transfer window.
It was expected that CSK would use the window to bring in an India batsman to strengthen the middle-order which is already missing someone of Suresh Raina's experience. With no Indian batsman in their squad performing consistently, they've had to bring in Sam Curran at the opening slot with Faf du Plessis and shift Shane Watson down to No.3.
The top three, comprising overseas players, leaves just one more spot for a foreign player. By rule, a franchise can't play more than four overseas players. MS Dhoni has used that fourth spot to accommodate his all-round ace Dwayne Bravo but he will no longer be available.
CSK now have only a mathematical chance of making the play-offs. They next take on defending champions Mumbai Indians on October 23.
With PTI and IANS inputs