Former India opener Aakash Chopra believes the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) would need to recruit spinners to their line-up now that Ravichandran Ashwin, who was with the team last season, has retired.
The IPL 2026 mini auction is reportedly scheduled for December 15. According to Chopra, even if Ravindra Jadeja and Noor Ahmad are retained, the Men in Yellow would want additional spin-bowling firepower.
“They might need a spinner now because Ashwin has left. So you will have to get someone in his place because you will not be able to manage with Ravindra Jadeja and Noor Ahmad. You will need more spinners,” he said.
Chopra mentioned that while Matheesha Pathirana’s stocks have gone down slightly, Khaleel Ahmed’s have been on the rise. Despite the likes of Anshul Kamboj, Nathan Ellis, and Mukesh Choudhary in the ranks,
The cricketer-turned-commentator suggested that CSK could ponder roping in a few more fast bowlers.
“Matheesha Pathirana’s stocks have gone slightly down, but Khaleel Ahmed’s have gone up. They have Anshul Kamboj, Nathan Ellis and Mukesh Choudhary as well. So they have bowlers, but you may want to add a bit more to that as well,” he observed.
If you release Devon Conway, you need another batter: Aakash Chopra
While Chopra believes that Ruturaj Gaikwad’s return will bolster the team, he feels that the five-time champions could opt to bring in a few more batters. He also highlighted that CSK might be left with only two specialist batters in their side if they let go of Devon Conway.
“With Ruturaj (Gaikwad) returning, opening and captaincy get set. There isn’t much to think about there. However, if you let Rahul Tripathi, Vijay Shankar and Devon Conway go, although you have Shivam Dube and Ravindra Jadeja in the lower-middle order, you still need one, if not two, fairly good batters, in which you need one or two overseas ones as well,” he said.
“When I see their overseas recruits, especially in terms of batting, Dewald Brevis, yes, but what about the rest? Only Rachin Ravindra is there, who can play as a proper batter. Then you see bowlers. They have Noor Ahmad, Matheesha Pathirana, Nathan Ellis, Jamie Overton and Sam Curran. None of them is a batter. If you release Devon Conway, you need another batter,” Chopra reasoned.
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