By IANS,
Chennai: While champions Deccan Chargers put on a brave face following their Friday night’s loss, the Chennai Super Kings admitted that they will be playing to their strength, which is batting, when the two clash here Sunday in the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 cricket tournament.
The pre-match media conference here Friday evening provided a study in contrast. Chargers coach Darren Lehman, who deputized for skipper Adam Gilchrist, believed that it was better to look ahead than at the past when asked how his team would regroup after the shock defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders in Navi Mumbai.
Declined to be drawn into a lengthy discussion, Lehman said: “We cannot think about that. We have to look at our strengths rather than anything else and execute our plans well.”
Admitting that the non-availability of some key players, especially West Indies fast bowlers Kemar Roach and Fidel Edwards, Lehman said it was up to the Indian players to chip in and make up the deficit.
“It (missing foreign stars) is the same for all teams. We don’t have Fidel Edwards who is out due to injury. Kemar Roach is set to join us quickly and that will strengthen the attack. This also means more responsibility for the Indian players in the side. It gives them a chance to showcase their potential,” he pointed out.
The absence of a home base in Hyderabad due to security concerns has unsettled the Chargers, who were looking forward to playing in front of their fans, but then, Lehman said, they cannot afford to dwell too much on this.
“It would have been great to play our home games in Hyderabad. We are going to miss the crowd support. We have never won at home and it would have been great to get a home win. We will be travelling to different venues, but we don’t have any control over and this is something that we have to manage,” Lehman said.
Looking at Super Kings, Lehman pointed out the obvious in saying that the hosts had a few star players in skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Matthew Hayden and Muttiah Muralitharan, who combine to make them a strong side.
“They are a exciting side and will be tough opponents. They have some very good batsmen. Bowlers like (Sudip) Tyagi and (Manpreet) Gony have done well too,” Lehman said.
Throwing some light on his own team, the coach observed: “We have a few exciting talents as well. Suman gave a good account of himself in 2009. I saw Hyderabad’s Ambati Rayudu do well for Mumbai Indians. So, the talent is well spread and we have our share of good young players.”
On his part, Chennai Super Kings skipper Dhoni declined to read too much in Chargers’ defeat Friday night, saying: “It does not really matter that they have lost the first match and also travelled. The schedule will demand that from all teams at some point. The players will still have to be at the top of their game and adapt well. Players will have to be mentally fit.”
Dhoni felt that the preparations of the Chennai Super Kings has been good and was looking forward to a strong performance this season.
“The first year was good, and in the second year, we utilised our resources well. The preparation has been good so far for this season,” he said.
Commenting on the Super Kings’ supposedly weak bowling attack, Dhoni admitted that it was a matter of concern. “In a sense, yes. But I see fielding as an area where we will have to improve further while our batting strength will influence results in T20,” he opined.
Dhoni disclosed that Hayden would open the batting either with Parthiv Patel or Murali Vijay. “We have options in front of us. It will be between Vijay and Partiv Patel to partner Hayden. If Partiv is playing, then he will keep wickets. But the eleven will be decided only on the morning of the match,” he said.
Closing the media interaction on a confident note, Dhoni reiterated that the performance of domestic players would be a critical factor. “We have a decent bench. The players are coming through well. It’s also a stage where they can learn so much from the international stars,” he said.