An honour to open for CSK knowing the history: Rachin Ravindra after MI win

India Today

Rachin Ravindra said it is an honour to open for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL knowing the history connected with it. Rachin scored a fine fifty to help CSK defeat their arch-rivals, Mumbai Indians, by four wickets.

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00:00Ritu is an amazing player, I think the way he showed his class out there and scoring

00:04at a striker like that and hitting the beautiful shots he did, certainly maybe a fraction of

00:09a tricky wicket, holding a bit, but I think it was a good wicket in general, I think Mumbai

00:12bowled quite well and didn't quite skid through as we thought as a Jew wasn't in factor, but

00:17the way he played was testament to his skill in class and made my job at the bronze strikers

00:21end a lot easier.

00:22Yeah, I mean Jadu's experience speaks for itself, I think he's a classy all-rounder

00:40and the way he's finished a lot of games in the past, I mean you even go two years ago

00:44getting 10 off two balls, his calmness in the middle was great and his clarity, I think

00:48it was great to just have those conversations about what over we might be a little bit more

00:52positive, how it looks in terms of partnership and stuff like that and look he knows his

00:56team well, he knows the conditions well, he's one of the epitomes of CSK, so sharing the

01:01crease with him was amazing.

01:03You sir.

01:04So Rachid, you played Vignesh for the first time, so somebody playing for the first time,

01:11can you just talk about what he was like doing, was it a challenge to pick him off his hands

01:16or something?

01:17Yeah, I think he bowled brilliantly well, I mean wickets speak for itself and for him

01:22to, I don't know how old he is, he looks pretty young, so for him to go about his business

01:27in that way was cool and definitely was a challenge, you know it was unfortunate that

01:32he had to bowl that sort of penultimate over, something, oh 18th maybe, and then it was

01:38just an over that we decided to take down with a slightly shorter side, but I think

01:42overall it got beautifully, to get wickets like Ritu, Dubey, Huda, three experienced

01:47campaigners, three very good players, so I'm picking him to have a good tournament.

01:52Yeah, Rachid, last season you were in the team, in and out, but yesterday Ritu came

01:58in and said he knew CSK's opener as well, he was pretty infantic, when did they tell

02:04you that you'd be opening and is it a long term kind of thing?

02:08I mean, look, a few days ago I guess and Fleam's quite good at those comms and I mean it's

02:14always an honour to open for CSK knowing the history of it and you look back at the heroes,

02:20like the Hussies, the Watsons, the McCullums, the Duplices, the Rutus, I feel like I'm missing

02:26a few, the Haydens, missing a few names there, but yeah it's certainly an honour, the Conways,

02:30you know there's been guys who've done so well, so I'm definitely grateful to be in

02:33this role and look, I mean we'll take it game by game and we know it's a long tournament

02:38so we'll just see what happens.

02:40Rachid, last year you started well and kind of tipped it off, so what's your learning

02:45from the first season, last year's IPL and coming into this season and again having a

02:49very good start today, how has it been your preparation for this tournament?

02:52Yeah, it's been great, I mean it hasn't been too much training because I've been playing

02:56a lot of cricket, especially in the Champions Trophy, so it's been nice to have that, coming

03:01to similar-ish conditions, so that's been a cool bit of prep, but yeah, I mean you're

03:06right, probably didn't go as well as I would have wanted to at the end, but slowly starting

03:10to find a wee bit of a tempo in that last game against Bangalore, in Bangalore and hopefully

03:15it may continue.

03:16Look, we know T20's a fickle game and results go up and down, but hopefully I can bat the

03:21way I want to and hit good cricket shots and results and wins for all of CSK.

03:26You at the back, sir.

03:27Yeah, Rajan, you must have watched the IPL when Ashwin was a part of CSK, what's it like

03:33to have him back in the set-up now and, you know, you played a season without him, I mean

03:39the previous one, what's it like with Ashwin in this team now?

03:43Yeah, I mean Ash is a world-class performer, I've played a bit against him and you're always

03:48wary against, mostly in Red Bull cricket obviously, but look, he brings a lot of experience, he

03:54brings a lot of his cricket knowledge, I mean, just even in the way he talks about spin bowling

03:58and the tips he gives out and the way he reads the game, looks into the game, I'm sure you

04:02all follow his podcast and stuff, so no, he's a great thinker of the game and it's, again,

04:07it's an honour to share the field with a lot of these guys, he's great in the Indian game,

04:10so guys I've grown up watching, which is definitely a pinch-myself moment.

04:15You.

04:18We've played three spin-offs today on a plan of one, do you think the remaining games also

04:24it's possible to use spin-offs in home games?

04:28Yeah, I think so, I mean, you look at the dynamic nature of all three of them, you know,

04:32you've got Ash who can spin the ball both ways, Nor who can spin the ball both ways,

04:35and Jaddu who's just so consistent, so you've got guys who can bowl to left and right-handers

04:39and we've got other options too, on the bench too, and I guess I can roll some left-arm-offies

04:44too, so, nah, we've got a good spin-depth and even our seamers as well, so it seems

04:48like the balance of the team is nice and if someone's not having a great day then, you

04:52know, the sixth bowler comes in and for our sixth bowler to be, who Jaddu was today, or

04:57one of the seamers, is amazing and I think if the wickets are similar to this in Chepauk

05:01then I think all three of them will have a great impact on the season.

05:06Well actually last season of course on the dugout you would have seen quite a few ovations

05:10for MS Dhoni, but today being in the middle and then hitting those winning runs and spoiling

05:14everyone, so how was that experience for you, just to soak in what was happening and were

05:20you actually able to soak in the madness which unfolded in those last 5-10 minutes?

05:24Yeah, I mean, it's difficult to soak it in when you're in the moment because, you know,

05:28you're singularly focused on winning the game for the team and, I mean, it's hard to ignore

05:33that, you know, you hear Dhoni come out and the whistles and the noise and, yeah, it was

05:37cool to share the crease with him for the first time, he's a legend of the game and

05:40people love him here so it's special and, yeah, I think all the crowd would have been

05:45hoping that I gave him one and finished the game and he would have finished it but, yeah,

05:49I mean, it's just about getting the job done and, look, Dhoni's finished so many games

05:53for CSK and I'm sure there's plenty more to come.

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