Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Kasi Viswanathan revealed that the England all-rounder Moeen Ali was very much interested in staying with the franchise for the next IPL season. Ali, who played IPL 2021 for CSK, had told them that he was not even thinking of playing for any other franchise.

CSK spent INR 42 crore to retain four players ahead of the IPL 2022 mega-auction. They retained Ravindra Jadeja for INR 16 crore, MS Dhoni for INR 12 crore, Ali for INR 8 crore, and Ruturaj Gaikwad for INR 6 crore. 

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"When we spoke to Moeen first, he said he has been overwhelmed with the offer which was made and he said he has not thought of any other franchise at all. That was his reaction immediately and he said 'whether I am one, two, three or four (retention number), I don't mind, I will be there'. So was the case with Rutu (Ruturaj)," Viswanathan told CSK's official website.

"We always had a feeling that he will be a very useful all-rounder for us especially when we play in India. We were able to get him only last year. So it is good that he came in and was able to perform under the captaincy of MS (Dhoni)," he added.

Dhoni didn't get retained as the first player by CSK, but it doesn't change anything as far as his role is concerned. "As all of you know, Thala has been the mainstay of CSK. He has been a captain who has delivered for the franchise and he has got the best out of the team any time he has played.

"As far as we are concerned, Thala plays a major role because he controls the team and the team has benefited by his experience, and nobody can doubt his skill as a captain," said the CSK CEO.

(With CSK website Inputs)