IPL 2021: 3 Teams that will be most affected in UAE

1. Chennai Super Kings

Every emperor will have that one place that he has found difficult to conquer. Every sportsman will have that one Achilles heel that will stick out like a sore thumb. MS Dhoni had lorded over the IPL and had allowed the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to achieve unprecedented success in the tournament.

Out of the 11 completed editions of the IPL that the CSK side has participated in, they have reached the Playoffs stage on 10 occasions. And, that one year where they did not reach the Playoffs was in the year 2020. For the first time in his fabled IPL career, MS Dhoni looked helpless on the field in the UAE last year. The CSK side did not qualify for the Playoffs last year, and CSK’s fortunes plummeted to an all-time low, as they finished the tournament at the second last place.

And needless to say, the MS Dhoni-led CSK side will be the most affected side when the tournament moves to the UAE. In IPL 2021, the ‘Men in Yellow’ were back to their best and were occupying the 2nd position in the IPL points table at the time of suspension.

While it was a team effort that propelled CSK to success in IPL 2021, a special mention has to be given to Moeen Ali and Sam Curran. Moeen Ali scored 206 runs for the MS Dhoni-led side in IPL 2021 and scored his runs at an average of 34.33 and a whopping strike rate of 157.25. Ali proved his worth with the ball too and scalped 5 wickets at an average of just 14.80 as well.

Sam Curran was also a revelation for CSK in the 2021 IPL season. The left-arm seamer picked up 9 wickets in IPL 2021 and scalped them at a strike rate of just 16.67. And, both these foreign recruits will most likely give the remainder of the IPL a miss, as they will be playing for England at that time.

CSK surely has a Herculean task ahead of them in the UAE. Can MS Dhoni wipe out that one blemish in his illustrious IPL career when IPL 2021 moves to the UAE? Or will the emperor still have that one land that will remain unconquered?