Nostalgia factor, experience is CSK’s philosophy for IPL 2018. Will that be enough?

If there a success formula in the Indian Premier League, it has been stability, at least to a certain degree. Chennai Super Kings were the pioneers in reaping the rewards of placing their faith in a trusted core group during their first stint. Mumbai Indians followed suit, and they soon eclipsed their southern rivals, and now have three title wins.

Rajasthan Royals, who were known as the ‘Moneyball team’ of the league, threw their past reputation out of the window during the auction. And they had one strategy in mind – to reunite many of the Rising Pune Supegiant players who finished beaten finalists in the previous edition.

Six of current CSK lot have donned the yellow jersey before, which includes skipper MS Dhoni, and by signing a player named Lungi, they have one eye on playing to the gallery (and the obvious puns) too. By bringing in the former Mumbai trio of Harbhajan Singh, Karn Sharma and Ambati Rayudu, Chennai’s unshakable belief in stability is only further reinforced.

A vast majority of the senior players are over 30 years old, and it was met with a lot of derision on social media. But make no mistake. While Twenty20 cricket was introduced to the world as a young man’s game, the elder statesmen in Chennai’s ranks have shown no indication of struggling to cope with the format.

The pressure is on Dhoni, though. He relinquished captaincy duties from all formats a year ago, and had a forgettable outing with Pune in 2016. A lot rides on the 36-year-old to show a new generation of fans the nous behind taking the team to six IPL finals – winning two – and one Champions League T20 title.

For the ones ruling Chennai out of the title race this time, coach Stephen Fleming has a message” “Some very good teams, after all, don’t actually go on to produce very good results. So, one must not look at the auction alone.”

It affirms the belief that age is just a number in the Chennai camp.

Squad breakdown

Total players: 25

Overseas players: 8

Batsmen: Murali Vijay, Sam Bilings (O), Suresh Raina, Faf du Plessis (O), Dhruv Shorey, Chaitanya Bishnoi, Kedar Jadhav, Ambati Rayudu

Bowlers: Mark Wood (O), Imran Tahir (O), Harbhajan Singh, Shardul Thakur, Lungi Ngidi (O), Deepak Chahar, Asif KM, Monu Kumar, Kanishk Seth

Wicketkeepers: MS Dhoni, Narayan Jagadeesan

All-rounders: Dwayne Bravo (O), Shane Watson (O), Ravindra Jadeja, Karn Sharma, Mitchell Santner (O), Kshitiz Sharma

Strengths

Success breeds further success is an old adage in the world of sport. There are as many as 10 previous winners in the squad – the aforementioned stability and tactical know-how behind the shaping of a team that can once again rule the roost.

Chennai’s decision to not make a strong enough attempt to keep of their mainstays from the past, Ravichandran Ashwin, raised some eyebrows. They made up for it by roping in Harbhajan Singh, who will also play for a different franchise for the first time in the tournament’s history.

Perhaps, the Chennai camp might stand vindicated over with the Harbhajan gamble over the course of the season. There is hardly anything to write about with Ashwin’s fielding prowess. Over the second half of 2017, the off-spinner also lost his place in limited-overs cricket to younger Indian spin guns, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal.

In Harbhajan they have a proven customer, who will relish bowling with Ravindra Jadeja. In New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner, Chennai also have variety in the spin department. The addition of Imran Tahir could have also led to Ashwin missing out. The South African leg-spinner is, undoubtedly, one of the finest exponents in white-ball cricket.

The batting, which was always Dhoni and Co’s trump card, looks solid as ever. The lower middle-order now been bolstered with some more power hitters in the form of Karn Sharma – another spin option – and Kedar Jadhav.

Shane Watson recently put his disappointing IPL outing from last year with Royal Challengers Bangalore with a fine Big Bash season. The Australian lends strength in depth if the team decides to go with a pace heavy lineup.

Shardul Thakur is a near certainty in the playing XI. The Mumbai pacer proved last year that he can lead a pace attack.

Weaknesses

A topic that has dominated Indian cricket circles over the past year is Dhoni’s waning powers a big-hitter. Will organising a cricketing reunion with their star alumni alone go on to be a recipe for success?

Dwayne Bravo missed the whole of last season and it remains to be seen if Suresh Raina can continue to be the most devastating player in the league. There is a lot riding on first-timers Mark Wood and Ngidi. The former in particular, is a fine exponent during the death overs, but will have little time to adjust to his new surroundings.

A few years ago, Chennai had the most fearsome opening pair in the form of Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith. The opening slot looks shaky this time around, and it remains to be seen if local boy Murali Vijay can roll back the years in the IPL. The 33-year-old’s limited-overs prowess has considerably tapered off since becoming India’s first-choice Test opener.

South Africa and England may have to leave as they have international commitments in the tail end of the IPL. Losing Faf du Plessis, Wood and Ngidi can throw a spanner in the works of a side, whose success mantra largely revolves around having a settled XI.

Ideal playing XI

Murali Vijay, Shane Watson (O), Suresh Raina, Faf du Plessis (O), MS Dhoni (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, Harbhajan Singh, Mark Wood (O), Lungi Ndigi (O) Shardul Thakur

Prediction

Despite several uncertainties, Chennai still has the firepower to go into the deep end of the tournament. Atleast on paper, though, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Sunrisers Hyderabad are stronger opponents. Play-off berth