CSK vs DC, IPL 2021: From Dhoni to Pant, 5 players to watch out for

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Delhi Capitals (DC) will lock horns in the second fixture of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Saturday (April 10) in Mumbai.

While DC made it to their first-ever IPL final last year, CSK had failed to make it to the playoffs for the very first time. Unfortunately, DC lost the final to Mumbai Indians, who went on to clinch their fifth title.

Just ahead of the IPL 2020, Dhoni announced his international retirement. He went into the IPL, having not played professional cricket for over a year. The lack of match practice was reflected in his game as he ended up having the worst IPL with the bat. He scored just 200 runs in 12 innings, which did not include a single fifty. Dhoni would want to turn tables around this time and he could not have asked for better opponents in the opening game – DC, against whom he has scored more runs (547) than any other CSK player.

Raina, who missed the IPL 2020 due to personal reasons, will be desperate to go out there and score runs for CSK. His absence was clearly felt at CSK last year, considering he has been their best batsman over the years. With 5,368 runs, Raina is not only CSK’s all-time leading run-scorer but also second on the list of most runs in the history of IPL after RCB’s Virat Kohli.

The young CSK batsman made the most of the limited opportunities he received the last term. CSK ended the tournament with three back-to-back wins and Gaikwad had scored 50-plus scores in all three games, including two unbeaten knocks. The 24-year-old will look to continue scoring runs for his side this season.

Ever since his heroics in Brisbane in the New Year’s Test, Pant has been in an unbelievable form with the bat. Although he did not have a great IPL 2020, Pant is expected to step up this season. He is also the captain of Delhi in the absence of injured Shreyas Iyer. In 68 career games in the IPL, Pant has 2079 runs at a strike rate of 151.97.

Like Pant, Ashwin also had a memorable 2020-21 season with Team India. After saving the Sydney Test, he produced an excellent all-round show during the England Tests. Moreover, he is the leading wicket-taker in CSK vs DC games in the IPL – 17 wickets, three scalps more than CSK’s Dwayne Bravo and five more than Ravindra Jadeja. Ashwin was DC’s third-best bowler in IPL 2020 after Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, having picked up 13 wickets in 15 games. Overall, in the IPL, Ashwin has 138 wickets in 154 games.