IPL 2023: Predicted Retained Squad Chennai Super Kings (CSK)

MS Dhoni and CSK to retain a large core as look at the strongest predicted retained Chennai Super Kings squad for IPL 2023. 

The T20 World Cup 2022 is being played with force with India beating the arch-rivals Pakistan in an incredible finish by King Virat Kohli. Parallelly, the 10 franchises are undergoing their homework to submit the list of their retained players ahead of IPL 2023 auction. It is understood that November 15 has been set as the deadline for all 10 teams to submit their list of retained players for IPL 2023.

The first team that we are analyzing, the Chennai Super Kings didn’t do well in IPL 2022. The 4-times IPL champions had a leadership turmoil in the mid-season with the baton passing from Ravindra Jadeja to MS Dhoni once again. As a result, CSK finished in 9th position with just 4 wins from 14 games.

Even then, MS Dhoni and Management shall look to retain the maximum number of players for IPL 2023. This is in line with their strategy as they rarely make abrupt changes in their squad. So, what squad shall Chennai Super Kings (CSK) retain for IPL 2023? Well, let’s break down the analysis into three major categories, batters, wicket-keepers, bowlers, and all-rounders.

Batters & WKs

Main Batters: Ruturaj Gaikwad & C Hari Nishaanth  

Wicket-keepers: MS Dhoni, Devon Conway & N Jagadeesan

Chennai Super Kings shall retain their core group batters for IPL 2023. This includes their prime openers, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway and their captain MS Dhoni. Apart from these three, CSK shall retain N Jagadeesan and C Hari Nishaanth, whom they have trusted for a few seasons now. 

The ones that are going to miss out from this line-up include Ambati Rayudu and Robin Uthappa. While Uthappa is already retired, Ambati Rayudu had also retired before taking back his retirement. Looking at Rayudu’s age, which is already 38, CSK might look for fresh players in the auction.  

All-rounders

Main All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Dwayne Bravo & Moeen Ali  

Backup All-rounders: Bhagath Varma, Mitchell Santner & Dwaine Pretorius

All-rounders are CSK’s strength, and they are most likely to retain all their all-rounders for IPL 2023. So, expect CSK to retain the Indian all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, and Bhagath Varma. From the overseas all-rounders, CSK shall retain the likes of Dwaine Pretorius, Dwayne Bravo, Moeen Ali, and Mitchell Santner. CSK can also look to leave out Bravo, but since he hasn’t retired, CSK might see him for one last year.  

Bowlers

Main Bowlers: Deepak Chahar, Maheesh Theeksana, Matheesha Pathirana & Mukesh Choudhary

Backup Bowlers: KM Asif, Prasanth Solanki, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Simarjeet Singh & Tushar Deshpande 

Coming to the bowlers, CSK might once again retain the core that they had picked in 2021; except for a few exceptions. The ones that are likely to miss out include Adam Milne, Chris Jordan, and Subhranshu Senapati. Barring these three, CSK shall retain their star IPL 2022 performers Mukesh Choudhary, Simarjeet Singh, Maheesh Theekshana, and Matheesha Pathirana. 

In terms of backups, Chennai Super Kings shall retain the likes of KM Asif, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, leggie Prashant Solani, and Tushar Deshpande. Apart from these, CSK would be excited to see their most expensive pacer, Deepak Chahar back in full fitness.

Overall, CSK are looking solid on paper with MS Dhoni as the Captain. If they retain a total of 21 players including 7 overseas players as shown in this article, they would be left with a purse of approximately 22 crores. This is a good number to select a solid overseas player and a few good young Indian players. 

IPL 2023: Strongest Predicted Retained Squad for Chennai Super Kings (CSK)

Total Players: 21 // Purse Remaining: ~INR 22 Crores

Batters:  C Hari Nishaanth & Ruturaj Gaikwad

WKs:  Devon Conway (WK), MS Dhoni (C&WK) & N Jagadeesan (WK)

All-rounders: Bhagath Varma, Dwaine Pretorious, Dwayne Bravo, Mitchell Santner, Moeen Ali, Ravindra Jadeja & Shivam Dube

Bowlers:  Deepak Chahar, KM Asif, Mukesh Chaudhary, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Simarjeet Singh, Tushar Deshpande, M Theekshana, Matheesha Pathirana & Prashant Solanki

Thanks for reading! What’s your predicted Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squad for IPL 2023? Please email your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com

ALSO READ: SA20 2023 Auction: Final Squad and Players List for All 6 Teams

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Adesh Kothari

Adesh Kothari is the founder of AK4Tsay1 Cricalytics with over 20 years of experience following Cricket.

Cricket to him is like what Football is to Lionel Messi, Singing is to Lata Mangeshkar, Dancing is to Michael Jackson, and Acting is to Clint Eastwood.

Besides his effervescent love for Cricket, Adesh is an MBA by qualification.