IPL 2021: Suresh Raina joins Chennai Super Kings camp, 'chinna thala' in action mode

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New Delhi, March 18: Former India cricketer Suresh Raina, who had missed the Indian Premier League (2020), is "super excited" about joining the Chennai Super Kings squad ahead of IPL 2021. Raina had missed the 13th edition of the league after pulling out of the tournament due to personal reasons.

The star batsman has been a key cog in CSK's batting wheel and in his absence, CSK had a dismal outing in last year's IPL. The Chennai-based franchise finished at the seventh position in the points table and with Raina joining the side, CSK will be looking to get back to winning ways in IPL 2021.

CSK on Wednesday shared Raina's practice video in which the batsman can be seen hitting all his trademark shots. "In awe of the southpaw! #ChinnaThala - Coming Soon with #WhistlePodu #Yellove," CSK tweeted.

Reacting to the video, Raina said," Super Excited and Eagerly waiting to come to our den."

Meanwhile, CSK skipper MS Dhoni has started his preparations for the season beginning from April 9. Last week, CSK posted a video on Twitter in which Dhoni can be seen hammering the ball out of the park during the net session. CSK will start their season against runners-up Delhi Capitals at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on April 10.

Before the mini-auction, Dhoni-led CSK had released Harbhajan Singh, Kedar Jadhav, Murali Vijay and Piyush Chawla from the squad. Shane Watson who had retired after the IPL 2020 season will also not be seen in action. Apart from the Aussie all-rounder, no other foreign player was released from the squad.

In the players' auction held on February 18, Chennai bought the likes of Moeen Ali and K Gowtham. The side also added Cheteshwar Pujara to their ranks for the upcoming IPL 2021.

CSK retained players: MS Dhoni, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suresh Raina, Sam Curran, Josh Hazlewood, Imran Tahir, Faf du Plessis, Dwayne Bravo, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Karn Sharma, Ambati Rayudu, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Narayan Jagadeesan, KM Asif, Lungi Ngidi, Sai Kishore.