Suresh Raina lost MS Dhoni's loyalty in UAE: Simon Doull on CSK batter going unsold in IPL 2022 Auction

Add as a preferred source on Google

New Delhi, February 17: Chennai Super Kings' decision to not buy Suresh Raina in the IPL 2022 Auction came as a shock to many. The former India cricketer had been a regular feature in the CSK outfit since the inception of the cash-rich league.

However, the left-handed batsman's below-par performance in the last two seasons resulted in getting way down in the pecking order. Not just CSK, other teams too showed no interest in the cricketer from Uttar Pradesh - who is the fourth all-time run-getter in IPL history, with 5528 runs in 205 games.

Raina was a part of CSK's all four title triumph in the IPL and had been a backbone of the team's middle-order over the years. But his performance in the previous edition of the game was below par and the franchises took that into consideration to ignore him.

While speaking on Raina going unsold in the auction, former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull shared a couple of reasons behind CSK and other teams' non-interest in him. Doull claimed that Raina lost MS Dhoni's loyalty due to his is consistently poor batting performances in the UAE last year.

"There are two to three parts to it. He lost his loyalty in the UAE, we don't need to go on (and talk about) why it was. There's enough speculation about that. He lost the loyalty of the team and he lost the loyalty of MS Dhoni. Once you do that, you're very unlikely to be welcomed back," Doull said during an interaction on Cricbuzz.

CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan after the IPL 2022 mega auction revealed why the franchise did not sign the 35-year-old cricketer - who is called 'Chinna Thala' by CSK fans - as he may not fit in the current team's scheme of things.

"Raina has been one of the most consistent performers for CSK for the last 12 years. Of course, it was very difficult for us, no to have Raina but at the same time, you should also understand that the team composition depends on the form and kind of team which any team would like to have so that's one of the reasons why we thought he may not fit into this team," Viswanathan said in a video shared by CSK on their YouTube channel a day after the two-day mega auction concluded.