Ben Stokes reunites with MS Dhoni as the England all-rounder sold for 16.25 crore to Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2023 auction.
Ben Stokes in CSK: CSK has now added the England captain to their ranks. Thus reuniting him with former India captain MS Dhoni. He has become the 3rd most expensive buy in IPL history.
When the two played for the now-defunct IPL team Rising Pune Supergiants. Stokes had prior experience with the IPL playing under MS Dhoni. The former franchise player competed in two IPL seasons, losing to Mumbai Indians in the final.
Ben Stokes participated in the auction despite not being selected for the IPL 2022. Stokes, a consistent performer for England in all formats, was anticipated to bring in a sizable sum at the auction table.
He participated in the most recent IPL with Rajasthan Royals. The talented all-rounder has excelled for the English team. His aggressive hitting style and knack for winning games, combined with his superb bowling skills, served as a substantial inducement for the CSK to go bananas at the auction table.
Stokes will add a lot of firepower to the CSK squad and the main reasons as CSK went for him are-
Ben Stokes’ playing style is ideal for Chennai Super Kings since he excels on slow surfaces, which are customary at Chennai Super Kings’ home stadium, the Chidambaram Stadium. He is also a great batsman against spin, which would greatly help Chennai’s middle order. The CSK captain of the future: Ben Stokes will undoubtedly be a future captain candidate for CSK given MS Dhoni’s possible retirement in the ensuing years.
Ben Stokes will be the ideal option to succeed Dhoni given that he might hang up his gloves the following year or the year after. And that’s possibly one of the key factors behind CSK’s financial ruin for him. He has also previously played with Dhoni, which is an added benefit. Ben Stokes is the ideal successor for Dwayne Bravo, who departed from the IPL this season. Dwayne Bravo was a workhorse for CSK. Over the years, Bravo has consistently delivered strong performances for the Chennai team with both ball and bat. Stokes’ presence has significantly filled a void for CSK.
The full list of players bought by Chennai Super Kings.
Players bought at 2023 auction: 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).
Purse Remaining: INR 1.5 crore
Total player slots available: 0
Overseas slots available: 0
CSK FULL SQUAD FOR IPL 2023
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, Ajinkya Rahane. Ben Stokes, Shaik Rasheed, Nishant Sindhu, Kyle Jamieson, Ajay Mandal, Bhagath Varma.
CSK PLAYERS RETAINED AHEAD OF 2023 AUCTION
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.
