Suresh Raina feels his India comeback is just one good season away

The ousted Indian cricketer Suresh Raina is excited to play under the captaincy of MS Dhoni once again in the upcoming edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) this year. The franchise Chennai Super Kings has returned to the setup after serving the suspension of two years and retained Raina as the second player along with Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja. However, the left-hander is also confident of making a comeback to the Indian team after having a good IPL season later this year.

The 31-year-old last played for India in a T20I against England in January 2017. But he has been ignored ever since from the team due to his fitness. Recently, he also cleared the yo-yo fitness test which is mandatory to stay in contention for the national side. Currently, India is struggling to find a proper batsman at number 4 position in ODIs and there is a possibility that the selectors might give an opportunity to Raina in the near future. He would love to pounce on to the opportunity and seal his place in the side for the 2019 World Cup.

Raina credits CSK for his maturity as a player

Suresh Raina, while speaking to India Today, opened up on his association with CSK since the inaugural edition of the cash-rich T20 league. He was excited to play in yellow again and felt like coming back home when asked about playing under the cool captaincy of Dhoni. “Playing with MS I think it’s always good to go back in your own den and you know everything so well. I’ve become a matured player there. I’ve worked with Stephen Fleming, Kepler Wessels, Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey,” he said.

“I’ve been lucky to have many left-handers in my team when I started off and having MS Dhoni in your side is great because he is so calm. The best thing about him is he does each and everything very calmly. I’m very excited to play in yellow again.” Raina added. He also felt that he only one good season away from making his comeback into the national side. He has tipped IPL as the best platform for him to perform and earn his place back in the blues.

“Definitely. I’ve played all those tournaments and domestic competitions and I haven’t missed a single game. It’s just a matter of one good season and I will be back because I am a fighter and I love what I got from my team — India and always try to win games for my country and coming back to CSK will give me one more season to improve as a person and a player,” emotional Raina said when asked about his chances of playing for India again.

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