Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 8 : England all-rounder Moeen Ali believes compatriot Ben Stokes to be an obvious candidate for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captaincy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) once the current skipper MS Dhoni decides to call it quits.
CSK splurged big money on Stokes in the IPL 2023 auction last year in December, but his performance has been underwhelming in two games so far, having scored 15 runs in two games and having bowled only one over.
England's Test team has transformed under Stokes' leadership within nearly a year, winning 10 out of 12 matches under him. Moeen opines that Stokes' success with England makes him an easy choice to succeed Dhoni as a skipper, but feels that the change might not be imminent.
"He is really enjoying himself. CSK is the type of franchise where you come here and you do tend to enjoy yourself and really love playing for this franchise. He has settled in really well. He is a big part of the team with his experience," said Ali as quoted by ESPNCricinfo on Friday.
Questioned if Stokes was a part of the team's leadership group, Moeen said that there is no such thing as a leadership group in the team.
"You have the captain and the coaches, and they talk. If Dhoni wants Ben Stokes' advice or a chat with him, it is a very open environment in that changing room," said Moeen.
Moeen also opines that Ruturaj Gaikwad, currently leading the race to Orange Cap in IPL 2023 with two half-centuries and 149 runs in two matches, is a potential CSK skipper for the future.
"I think there's a chance [that Stokes succeeds Dhoni]; of course there is a chance, because he has obviously done really well in Test cricket. But MS is still obviously in charge and he is going to be captain for a while. We have some other guys as well: Ruturaj is a fantastic player with a good head on his shoulders, so it depends on what the franchise wants," said Moeen.
Stokes has been managing a knee injury for a considerable period of time and had taken cortisone injections before travelling to India for the IPL. He was expected to start off the tournament as a batter, but was fit enough to bowl during the second match against Lucknow Super Giants. He gave away 18 runs in his first over and was not called again.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Stokes insisted that his "main priority" was ensuring he will be able to "fulfil my role as fourth seamer" in the Ashes series in June later this year.
"Great format to come back into bowling again is not it, T20?" Stokes joked. "I said at the end of [the] Wellington [Test], it has been a very frustrating year - that's how long it has been, bowling with this knee problem. Not being able to fulfil my role properly as fourth seamer has been frustrating."
Stephen Fleming, Chennai's head coach, said that the franchise would only utilise Stokes as a bowler when he was "100% ready to go". Even Stokes confirmed that he had been able to bowl "pain-free" in against LSG, after "a lot of hard work" leading up to the tournament.
Stokes has bowled 174.3 overs in 12 Tests as skipper for England, but had bowled only nine in recent series of two matches against New Zealand. He hopes to contribute fully as a bowler ahead of the Ashes series against Australia at home.
"I have worked so hard over the last month, five weeks, to get to where I am now. Being able to bowl pain-free, touch wood, has been good. Even [on Monday] night, I went for 18 runs but I was like, 'I managed to bowl an over without any pain in my knee," said Stokes.
"That is down to a lot of hard work that I have done away from [the game] medically, in the gym, and obviously I have had a bit of help with some cortisone injections, but everything is going nicely. I will just take it step by step and not look to rush myself in too much, because obviously the main priority for me is making sure that I can fulfil my role as fourth seamer in the Ashes," concluded Stokes.
Four-time champions CSK will take on five-time champions Mumbai Indians at Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.
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