‘All geared up’: Suresh Raina, Cheteshwar Pujara begin preparations for IPL 2021

MS Dhoni & Co. will begin their campaign in the IPL 2021 against Delhi Capitals on April 10 in Mumbai.

Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina has begun his preparations for the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He has been training in Ghaziabad and will soon join skipper MS Dhoni and others at the Chennai Super Kings training camp in Chennai.

Suresh Raina (L), Cheteshwar Pujara (R) (HT Collage)

Dhoni & Co. will begin their campaign in the IPL 2021 against Delhi Capitals on April 10 in Mumbai.

On Monday, Raina shared a video of his workout routine on social media and revealed that it was his last gym session before joining the CSK squad. “Last session before joining the team! All geared up for IPL. Can't wait!,” Suresh Raina wrote.

Suresh Raina, who is the leading run-scorer for CSK, didn’t feature in the previous season which was held in the UAE. He cited personal reasons and pulled out of the tournament after joining the squad in the bio-bubble.

Meanwhile, Indian Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara also hit the nets ahead of joining the CSK camp. The right-hand batsman shared a video on his Instagram story, using the hashtags – ‘#ipl2021’ and ‘#yellove’.

Cheteshwar Pujara begins preperations for IPL 2021 (Screengrab of a video shared by Pujara on Instagram)

It turned out to be a forgettable season for the Dhoni-led side in IPL 2020 as they finished seventh in the points table and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time in the tournament history.

CSK would look to start afresh as the preparations have begun at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The likes of captain Dhoni, Ambati Rayudu and a few uncapped players have already been training there and the franchise keeps the fan updated with the videos of net practice on social media.

Earlier in February, CSK bought a total of 6 players at the auction. Off-spinner Krishnappa Gowtham was bought for a whopping ₹9.25 crores while England all-rounder Moeen Ali was bought for ₹7 crores. Pujara was also bought at his base price of ₹50 lakh.