Former Indian fast bowler Ashish Nehra who has played for five different teams in the Indian Premier League has revealed why Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians have found success in the IPL consistently and why Royal Challengers Bangalore have found it tough despite having a strong team.
Picking CSK as the team he enjoyed most playing for in the IPL, Nehra credited the team atmosphere for continued success at the franchise.
“The team atmosphere at CSK is unique. That’s why the team hasn’t just been successful but extremely consistent,” Nehra told Aakash Chopra during an online chat.
Chennai Super Kings have reached the playoffs of the IPL in every season they have played in while winning the title on three occasions. The MS Dhoni-led outfit have also been runners-up on five occasions.
“The reason for the consistency is India Cements. They have been running cricket in south India for so many years, so they know the game. On top of it they got a captain like MS Dhoni,” Nehra said.
“The CSK management supports MS Dhoni completely. The problem is that management in some franchises think they know the game better that then players and coaches. MS Dhoni never had to face that. Thus, if there’s no interference and you are able to keep the same team for 2-3 years, the results do come,” he added.
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Nehra stressed on the importance of creating a core group not just of players but also the coaching staff in order to succeed in the IPL.
“Since IPL is such a short tournament, the coach, the players and the captain need to be together for few seasons to understand each other. After that you start getting results,” he said.
“One of the team that has come up during the last few years in Sunrisers Hyderabad. But the reason is the likes of Tom Moody, VVS Laxman and Muttiah Muralitharan have worked towards it for 4-5 years. They won the IPL and have qualified for playoffs every year. So it’s a great success,” he added.
“Similarly, Mumbai Indians also realised after 2010 that this is our core group and we’ll keep them. You look at Pandya brothers, Bumrah, Rohit Sharma and Kieron Pollard have been there for many years. Then Zaheer played there for one season and is now a coach there. Sachin Tendulkar is always around,” he continued.
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Nehra criticised the managements of other franchises, in particular the one at RCB, for making too many changes to the playing and coaching staffs.
“RCB have always had a strong team but still they have struggled. The management changed three years ago and it has now changed again. I feel the management there has a long way to go when it comes to cricket. But in India, everyone has an opinion on cricket and they have it too,” he said.
“But the business from which they have come and what cricket is there’s a difference of chalk and cheese. Hopefully, they understand it sooner or later,” he added.
The IPL has been postponed indefinitely due to the Covid-19 pandemic with some reports claiming the BCCI is looking at an October window to hold the 13th edition.