Chennai Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan, has said that he is confident that Ben Stokes will be available for the entirety of the upcoming season. CSK showed plenty of faith in Stokes by purchasing him for a whopping Rs. 16.25 crores in the latest mini-auction, but there have been concerns that England’s test captain may not be able to play the full season, March 31 – May 28, because he will need to return to his duties ahead of the single test against Ireland at Lords prior to this summer’s Ashes.
That is our understanding (that Stokes will play the full season). Before the auction, the BCCI had conveyed to us that the English players will be available for the entire IPL,” Viswanathan told Cricbuzz. “We’ve not had any information that is contrary to the BCCI communication.”Stokes had said earlier that he will make sure that he is “ready” and “available” to play the test against Ireland starting June 1, but a compromise will have to be made if CSK go deep in the IPL.
Meanwhile, CSK will be looking at their fast bowling options ahead of the new season with New Zealand pacer Kyle Jamieson, whom they purchased for Rs. 1 crore in the auction, out due to injury. Viswanathan said that a call on his replacement will also be made soon.Most of the entire team, including captain MS Dhoni, has come together in Chennai for a preparatory camp barring two key players, Shardul Thakur and Ruturaj Gaikwad, who are still at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
