N Srinivasan has gone back on his statement regarding Suresh Raina’s return from UAE and him opting to skip the IPL 2020 after 13 members of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squad tested positive for COVID-19.
Srinivasan had told Outlook India that Suresh Raina will realize his folly given that INR 11 Cr he makes per season playing in the IPL for CSK and also suggested that success might have gone to his head. He had even called the former India batsman, a prima donna.
Now in an interview with the Times of India, Srinivasan said that his comments were taken out of context by the media and that the CSK franchise stands strong with Suresh Raina and his decision to put family first.
Srinivasan said, "His (Raina’s) contribution to the CSK franchise has been phenomenal through the years. And it is unfortunate that people are trying to put two and two together to drive a wedge.”
Srinivasan is also of the firm view that "it is important to understand what Suresh is going through right now and give him space."
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Raina has been the quintessential "Chennai boy", earning the nickname "Chinna Thala" (second in command) to skipper MS Dhoni or "Thala" (leader) ever since been picked in the 2008 auction. He is the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament’s history with 5,368 runs from 189 innings, a century and 38 half-centuries, and a strike rate of 137.14.
He is the most capped player in IPL as well with 193 matches to his name.
“The franchise will always stand by him and he has our complete support during these times of distress," Srinivasan further told TOI.
Raina began to feel claustrophobic inside the hotel room of the Taj in Dubai after the team members had isolated themselves post their arrival in UAE and the all-rounder panicked for lack of enough space to move around.
Srinivasan clarified, once again underlining that it was unfortunate that he had been quoted out of context. "We take such a lot of pride in saying ‘IPL is among the world’s biggest sporting properties’ and rightly so because what it has achieved in just 13 years is phenomenal," he said.
"We need to preserve it in all its glory and work towards making it bigger and better," Srinivasan told TOI.
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Srinivasan also sees the shifting of IPL to UAE, in the middle of the pandemic, as a gigantic exercise and a model that other sports properties might follow in time to come.
"The league was moved out of the country twice in the past, but this time the circumstances are different. On that count, Indian cricket is setting a global benchmark for world sport. A successful IPL in UAE should and will become the new global benchmark for sports in the post-COVID era. It is something to be proud of," he said.
"Everybody should come together and work towards a successful IPL. I can see that happening already and it’s a great feeling to see the 13th edition taking shape," he added.
(Times of India inputs)
