Ahead of his side’s final league stage match against the Gujarat Titans (GT), Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batting coach Michael Hussey spoke on MS Dhoni‘s availability for the match, saying that he is not available due to a thumb injury and could feature if the team manages to qualify for the playoffs. After a setback against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), CSK face the Gujarat Titans (GT), seated at the second spot in the points table, in a must-win clash that would take them to 14 points if they win. If they do, they will then have to hope that the other remaining fixtures of the group stage go their way and help them reach the playoffs.
Speaking during the post-match presser, Hussey said, “I can confirm he is not here with the team, but if we do happen to qualify, then he will definitely join back up with the team. He has got a bit of a sore thumb, so it is recovering nicely, but he would not be ready for this match. But hopefully, if we can manage to get through to the playoffs, then hopefully he will be alright.”
On his side’s previous game against SRH, which saw the Men in Orange chase down 181 runs courtesy of a sensational fifty from Ishan Kishan, he said that while it was disappointing not being able to finish on their home ground on a high, the team will take its learnings and has to move on quickly.
“Obviously, it has made it more difficult for us to get through to the top four. Individually, everyone will take a few little learnings from it, but we have to move on quite quickly. We were all very disappointed, obviously, after the match,” he said.
“We were a bit flat in the dressing room. But the coach spoke to us about, OK, come on, we have got one more game, one more chance, so we have got to make sure we move on from this very quickly. It is all about our attitude moving forward,” he added.
On a parting note, Hussey said that the focus is on putting in the “best possible performance” in Ahmedabad.
“As long as we move forward with a really positive, confident attitude, we stick together, we keep smiling, and we have got to make sure we try and put on our best possible performance here in Ahmedabad. That has been the focus, trying to move on as quickly as possible and turn up here with the best attitude we can,” he signed off.
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