Bevab
Staff Member
I doubt Mo would have been preferred over Rachin at any point due to the different roles they play. CSK are quite stubborn over their roles and combinations to the point of sticking to them at all costs until they're forced to adapt but once they do make an adaptation they rarely go back to what they previously preferred. It makes them look like a tactical dinosaurs but I believe they're quite flexible and creative, they're just not as open with their plans as some of the other teams. My theory is that Rachin was bought primarily because Fleming realised (or was told discreetly) that Conway wasn't in good touch and they might need an alternative for the opening role. It would allow them to have a backup to Conway (I doubt they would have wanted to actually replace him though, he would have likely played almost all of the games and played a few as the keeper to give Dhoni some rest) and have a look at a very promising player who was likely to be undervalued due to his base T20 stats and decide if he's worth a cheap retention next year... but fate took a different turn and now CSK may have to pay a premium to retain Rachin. I would still do it because he's really, really good. Mo's unlikely to be picked for his bowling either even if he's been quite valuable with it, gotta agree with that. I think his role at the moment is to be the alternate spin basher or an extra one depending on how the rest of the campaign goes by.
I don't rate Nabi too highly but at this point I can see why he would be valuable if only to provide an extra spin option. Was surprised it took them so long to bring Madhwal in despite him playing well last season; on the same note what happened to Wadhera? Is he injured or did he have a poor SMAT?
I do like the more creative solutions teams are looking for with the impact sub this season compared to last even if the majority have preferred to do it the dull way. I can't fault them for doing it, the impact sub gives you an all-rounder that can average in the high twenties with the bat and in the mid twenties with the ball as the worst case while being an upgrade on the fielding side on paper. If such a player were to exist in the auction they would be the most expensive player. I do think a few teams are realising that such an option may not always be the best one even if it's fairly simple to use and the flexibility that can be extracted from it with the examples we've provided can be better on a game by game basis even if the stats don't outline that. I would like to see what sort of a squad teams can build with this rule in mind in the upcoming mega-auction since they would have all realised the benefits of it.
and I don't want to speak again about politics in TN cricket done by srini mama.
