Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain of the four-time IPL champion Chennai Super Kings, is now recovering from a knee ailment that is limiting his movement considerably, according to head coach Stephen Fleming.
Sisanda Magala, a South African fast bowler for CSK, also sustained a split webbing on Wednesday night at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, adding to the injury concerns.
“He (Dhoni) is nursing a knee injury, which you can see in some of his movement, hindering him somewhat. His fitness has been professional. He comes in months before the tournament starts. He does some nets in Ranchi, but his main pre-season is a month before he comes to Chennai,” Fleming told reporters at the post-match press conference after CSK suffered their second defeat in four games this season.
But the mounting injuries in seam attack are concerning the coach, with Sisanda Magala bowling only two overs against RR before he was forced to leave the field due to split webbing. This will leave him out of action for two weeks. He had joined the side as a replacement for New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson, who has been ruled out of the tournament due to a back injury. CSK is also without their left-arm seamer Mukesh Choudhary, who will also miss this IPL due to injury after a breakout season last year.
Magala’s injury is a huge blow to CSK, especially in away matches as his yorkers, slow variations offer a lot to the side. He can also deliver big hits with the bat. The only other seamer from the overseas category is Sri Lanka’s Matheesha Pathirana, who had arrived to Chennai from NZ on Monday. He has also just recovered from COVID-19. Maheesh Theekshana, another Sri Lankan, made a return to the side against RR but went wicketless, giving away 42 runs in four overs.