IPL 2024 OPENER #cskvsrcb #ipl2024
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The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are set to begin their IPL 2024 season on March 22 when they face the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at MA Chidambaram Stadium. The tournament will begin with a match between the defending champions, CSK and RCB, which have played 31 matches so far. CSK won 20 matches and RCB won 10, with one match ending with no result. The MA Chidambaram stadium is known for providing an extra edge to spinners, but chasing has been difficult at Chepauk due to slow pitches during the second half. The weather conditions for the match are expected to be clear and not likely to influence the proceedings of the match.
The match will be broadcast on the Star Sports Network in India and live streamed on the JioCinema app and its website. The XI for the CSK is predicted to include Rachin Ravindra, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Daryl Mitchell, and Rachin Ravindra. For the RCB, the match will feature Faf du Plessis (captain), Rajat Patidar, Virat Kohli, Anuj Rawat, Dinesh Karthik, Suyash Prabhudessai, Will Jacks, Saurav Chauhan, Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, Karn Sharma, Cameron Green, Swapnil Singh, Mayank Dagar, Manoj Bhandage, Akash Deep, Alzarri Joseph, Lockie Ferguson, Mohammad Siraj, Yash Dayal, Tom Curran, Reece Topley, Himanshu Sharma, Rajan Kumar, and Vyshak Vijay Kumar.
Dhoni and Kohli’s return to action
Dhoni and Kohli will return to action after nearly a year, having undergone knee surgery following the previous IPL season. CSK’s designated spin-hitter, Shivam Dube, is also fit after missing the Ranji Trophy knockouts with an injury. However, they will be without their death-over specialist, Matheesha Pathirana, who will miss the initial stages of IPL 2024 with a hamstring injury. For RCB, Virat Kohli will also return to competitive cricket after a two-month break. He has played only two T20 games since the previous IPL, and this season will act as his runway to the 2024 T20 World Cup in June.
Kohli displayed an uncharacteristically aggressive approach early in those two innings against Afghanistan. Chennai Super Kings might play Dube as a batter alone and pick one of Mukesh Choudhary or Tushar Deshpande, last season’s highest wicket-takers, while bowling. The IPL 2024 opener will be played on the centre wicket at Chepauk, which traditionally is a spin-friendly one. The pitch and conditions for the match will be different from the sharp turner used for the Ranji Trophy fixture between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka last month.