CSK seamer Mukesh Choudhary doubtful starter for IPL 2023
File photo of Mukesh Choudhary© BCCI/Sportzpics
Chennai Super Kings’ Mukesh Choudhary is a doubtful 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-hander will miss part of the tournament has yet to come. The 26-year-old had joined the CSK prep camp in Chennai earlier this month before joining NCA. The time frame for his return from injury is not yet clear.
Mukesh last played a competitive cricket match for Maharashtra in December 2022 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the country’s top 50 tournament in Ahmedabad.
That injury has put another damper on CSK’s title hopes. Their close attack has already lost speedy New Zealander Kyle Jamieson, who is also recovering from a back injury. Deepak Chahar, the pace spearhead, is also working his way back from injury. Ruturaj Gaikwad, the team’s in-form first batter, is also injured and recovering. All-rounder Shiva Dube is also healing from an injury sustained during training sessions for the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
Sri Lankan bowling couple Maheesh Theekshana and Matheesha Pathirana will also miss some CSK action initially. Their domestic commitments, which include a six-game white ball series against New Zealand, end on April 8.
Choudhary’s absence will leave CSK without a left seamer in their squad. He was one of the biggest finds last IPL season as he became the team’s highest combined wicket-taker with 16 scalps in 13 games at an economy rate of 9.31. Eleven of those wickets came on the power play, the most frequently won by a bowler at this stage of the tournament.
Simarjeet Singh from Delhi and Tushar Deshpande from Mumbai, who recently won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title, are the reserve pace bowling options for Super Kings.
CSK will play its first IPL 2023 match against the Gujarat Titans on March 31st, which also happens to be the tournament opener.
The four-time champions will play their first game against the Lucknow Super Giants on April 3 at the home arena of MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Last year, CSK finished ninth in the points table after winning just four of their 14 games and earning just eight points.
Chennai Super Kings: Squad Strength 25 Players (Overseas 8)
Players purchased at the 2023 IPL Auction – Ajinkya Rahane (INR 50,000), Ben Stokes (INR 16.25 crore), Shaik Rasheed (INR 20,000), Nishant Sindhu (INR 60,000), Kyle Jamieson (INR 1 crore) , Ajay Mandal (INR20,000), Bhagath Varma (INR20,000)
Retained Players – 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.
(This story was not edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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