May I Help U?

The Mahendra Singh Dhoni led Chennai side tasted success for most part of the tournament in both the first and the second editions of the IPL but faltered right at the end. In 2008, the Super Kings, who made it to the final, were overpowered by a resolute Rajasthan side, and in the tourney last year, they faced defeat at the hands of a rejuvenated Bangalore in the semi-final.

In both seasons of the IPL, Chennai won 8 of the 14 matches in the preliminary stages. The team finished second in the previous year's edition while they ended up in the 3rd place on the points table during 2008.

Strengths: The main strength of the Chennai team lies in their batting line-up. A Matthew Hayden in full flow would definitely be a sore sight for the opposition bowlers. And there is also the presence of allrounders like Albie Morkel and Thissara Perera who lend more stability to the middle order. Not to mention, the latest inclusion in the team - Justin Kemp - The hard hitting South African, who is also a handy seam bowler. The Indian contigent too is well balanced with Suresh Raina, Murali Vijay and Badrinath in good form in recent times as well as a driving force in skipper MS Dhoni. Chennai are not as strong in bowling as they are in batting, but they have a couple of good Indian domestic bowlers, with Sudeep Tyagi already having made it to international selection, and MS Gony having had a whiff too. Shadab Jakati and L Balaji are also handy customers.

Weaknesses: The side is sometimes too dependant on Matthew Hayden to give a good start. Although Hayden performed in almost every match in the last season, Chennai felt his absence in the matches he missed out on. The Super Kings are also not the best when it comes to catching and ground fielding, making it all the more difficult for them in this short form of the game. The bowling also could be a worry, as their star foreign bowlers - Muralitharan and Makhaya Ntini - have both experienced form slumps associated with age in the recent past. Though both remain extremely fit, and Murali in particular still can pose a credible threat, they are both not the forces they were in the previous two editions of the tournament. With only four foreign recruits allowed in the eleven, the captain and the coach would have a hard time deciding whether to strengthen the bowling attack or include more overseas batters.

Players to watch:

Matthew Hayden: He may have retired from International cricket but the bowlers still experience nightmares when he strides out to bat in the IPL. His hard and clean hitting coupled with his run-hungry attitude is a huge plus for the Chennai team which would bank on this veteran to come out with his best. While it can be argued that a player coming from a one-year break can be a bit rusty, Matthew Hayden is such a player who needs to spend very little time in the middle to be back to his devastating best.

Shadab Jakati: A left-arm orthodox spinner hailing from Goa, Jakati shot into prominence when be became the only Indian bowler to take two 4-wicket hauls in the same season of the IPL. His back-to-back 4/22 and 4/24 against Hyderabad and Delhi in the 2009 edition of the IPL helped Chennai overcome the oppoition. A dark horse in the Super Kings' stable, Jakati would be a handy weapon in the spinner friendly Indian conditions.

Key Players' Timelines:

Players	Available from	No. of matches they will play
Michael Hussey	03rd April	6 (will miss 8)

With the exception of an injury hit Jacob Oram and Michael Hussey, who would be on the tour to New Zealand till the 31st of March, the Super Kings will have the services of most of their overseas players, giving the team an added advantage.