Defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) managed to retain their core team while adding surplus strength to their squad for the 2022 Indian
Premier League (IPL). The yellow army went into the auction with a
total purse of Rs 48 crore after retaining Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, Moeen
Ali and Ruturaj Gaikwad. In the auction, they were
able to purchase back  Deepak Chahar,
Ambati Rayudu, Robin Uthappa, and Dwayne Bravo, who had played major roles in
their title-winning season in 2021.

The team lost against KKR and Lucknow Super Giants in their first two games. 

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CSK squad: Ravindra Jadeja (c), MS Dhoni, Moeen Ali,
Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Dwayne Bravo, Ambati Rayudu, Deepak Chahar, KM
Asif, and Tushar Deshpande, Shivam Dube, Maheesh Theekshana, Rajvardhan
Hangargekar, Simarjeet Singh, Devon Conway, Dwaine Pretorius, Mitchell Santner,
Adam Milne, Subhranshu Senapati, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Solanki, C Hari
Nishaant, N Jagadeesan, Chris Jordan, K Bhagath Varma

Here’s a SWOT Analysis of the CSK squad for IPL 2022:

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Strengths – Batting

CSK have one of the strongest batting attacks in IPL.
Their depth is pretty sound. CSK have players who can chip in with the bat
apart from bowling four full overs. Captain Ravindra Jadeja himself is a fine
all-rounder. Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni
and Mitchell Santner have been a part of this tournament for years now. They
will certainly make the CSK batting attack formidable. In Shivam Dube, they
have a hard-hitter.

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With such a batting attack at their disposal, CSK
definitely can chase their fifth IPL title.

Weaknesses – Bowling

Though CSK got a fine bowling attack, their main worry
would be to not leak too many runs in the death overs. This season, the Chennai
franchise has roped in Chris Jordan and Tushar Deshpande to address the issue
with all-rounder Dwayne Bravo playing a supporting role in the bowling unit.
However, it has been seen in the past that both Jordan and Bravo are also not
immune to the onslaught in the death overs.

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So, Deepak Chahar will have to bear extra
responsibility to take wickets at regular intervals and prevent the flow of runs.
It has to be seen how newly-appointed captain Ravindra Jadeja deploys himself
into the action and Moeen Ali. Mitchell Santner, who is known for his trickery,
is also a good option to bowl during the powerplay.

Opportunities – Promising batters

With the T20 World Cup around the corner, youngsters
would like to make a mark to catch the attention of selectors. Last season’s
Orange Cap winner Ruturaj Gaikwad and Shivam Dube have a good chance to prove
their worth in the IPL. Uncapped players N Jagadeesan and Tushar Deshpande can
also use the opportunity to showcase their talent in the biggest T20 league in the
world.

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Threats – Foreigners

CSK will have to finalise their top four overseas
players. Moeen Ali and Dwayne Bravo are two automatic in the playing XI. The
franchise will also be looking to fill in the void of Josh Hazlewood replacing
him with death-over specialist Chris Jordan.

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With three
foreigners’ places filled in the squad, CSK will have to toss-up between Devon
Conway, Dwaine Pretorius and Mitchell Santner for the fourth foreigner.