Many big names and star players were unsold at the mega auction for the Indian Premier League 2022 and former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Suresh Raina is one of them.
Multiple former cricketers and experts have already spoken on this matter and now former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper and the current Director of Cricket for the Rajasthan Royals, Kumar Sangakkara has opened up on it. According to Sangakkara, “there are different ways to look at it.”
Sangakkara speaks
“There are different ways to look at it. As the years go by, players change and reputations are also made new by younger players,” Kumar Sangakkara said during a conversation on ‘Red Bull Cricket’ on Clubhouse.
The 44-year-old former wicketkeeper-batsman feels that Raina “has been an absolute legend.”
“In the case of Suresh Raina, his reputation is unbelievable in IPL cricket. He has been an absolute legend, one of the best and top-most performers season after season. When you go into granular detail, perhaps the player is not suited for that season. It takes nothing away from the player being one of the best, or the player being of absolutely high quality and it is something that analysts, coaches, and owners look for," Sangakkara further explained.
Stats and numbers
Raina had been with the Chennai Super Kings franchise since the 2008 edition of IPL (except the 2016 and 2017 editions when the franchise was banned). Raina has played in 205 IPL matches and scored 5528 runs at an average of 32.52 and with a strike rate of 136.73. The 35-year-old batter had bagged 39 fifties and one century in the IPL.
In the 2022 edition of IPL, the defending champions CSK under the leadership of MS Dhoni will take on Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the first match of the 15th edition of IPL on March 26, at the Wankhede Stadium, in Mumbai.
Mumbai Indians frachise led by Rohit Sharma will have Delhi Capitals (DC), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Rajasthan Royals (RR), and Lucknow Super Giants in Group A of the 2022 edition of IPL.
On the other hand, Group B is comprised of Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Sunrises Hyderabad (SRH), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Punjab Kings, and Gujarat Titans.
