‘Raina has shrewd cricketing brain’

National chief selector and Chennai Super Kings’ ambassador Krishnamachari Srikkanth was pleased on Sunday even though his team lost to Kings XI Punjab in a thrilling super over. Chika (as he is called), however, enjoyed the intensity of a gripping T20 contest, reports Bivabasu Kumar.

National chief selector and Chennai Super Kings’ ambassador Krishnamachari Srikkanth was pleased on Sunday even though his team lost to Kings XI Punjab in a thrilling super over. Chika (as he is called), however, enjoyed the intensity of a gripping T20 contest. And while it was the maiden super over in this year’s IPL, it was also Srikkanth’s first on-field experience.

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“It was a new experience for me. I have seen a bowl-out and a super over on television, but it was the first time that I was physically present at a stadium to witness it,” Shrikkanth told the HT on Monday.

The former India opener compared the match to the drawn Test against Australia in 1986. “I can only compare this to a situation when we played a Test match against Australia in 1986. I played in that match. It was in Chennai at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. As a cricketer I can feel how gripping it is to tie a match against a fighting opposition,” he said.

According to Srikkanth, there were plenty of positives from Sunday’s match. Though he rued MS Dhoni’s absence due to injury, he praised Suresh Raina’s skills as a stand-in skipper. “Raina has a shrewd cricketing brain. He has shown maturity and has led the team nicely so far. It is a huge learning curve for the youngster, and, by now, he must have realised what it takes to be a leader.”

The chief selector expressed satisfaction over the performance of the Indian players in the tournament so far.