Distracted by off-field furores surrounding them, two-time former champions Chennai Super Kings would look to bring the focus back on their cricketing prowess when they take Kings XI Punjab in their IPL opener in Abu Dhabi today.
This year, CSK team is entering the league with few new faces like New Zealand swashbuckler Brendan McCullum, West Indian leg-spinner Samuel Badree. However the team will miss Mr.Reliable Australian Michael Hussey and South African Albie Morkel, after losing them in the players' auction.
Kings XI Punjab skipper G Bailey on the other side is quite excited to have Virender Sehwag in their team.
"No doubt, he will have a big impact. Having him around the group is a great thing. It will be great for him to go out and play with freedom," Bailey had stated ahead of the tournament.
The tournament is gaining the momentum and everyone is expecting to see a thriller when Chennai willtake on Punjab today
Chennai Squad:
Local Players: MS Dhoni (capt) (wk), Suresh Raina, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Ashish Nehra, Mohit Sharma, Baba Aparajith, Ishwar Pandey, Ronit More, Pawan Negi, Vijay Shankar, Mithun Manhas
Foreign Players: Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, Brendon McCullum (wk), Dwayne Smith, Matt Henry, Samuel Badree, Ben Hilfenhaus, John Hastings
Punjab Squad:
Local Players: Virender Sehwag, Cheteshwar Pujara, Manan Vohra, Murali Kartik, Parvinder Awana, Lakshmipathy Balaji, Sandeep Sharma, Shardul Thakur, Anureet Singh, Shivam Sharma, Rishi Dhawan, Mandeep Singh, Akshar Patel, Karanveer Singh, Gurkeerat Mann, Wriddhiman Saha
Foreign Players: George Bailey (capt), David Miller, Shaun Marsh, Beuran Hendricks, Mitchell Johnson, Glenn Maxwell, Thisara Perera