IPL 2018 | MS Dhoni to bat in top order for Chennai Super Kings

At the age of 36, veteran Indian wicket-keeper batsman MS Dhoni has shown no signs of slowing down anytime soon as far as his game is concerned. Dhoni is still extremely fast between the wickets and his lightning quick hands have proved to be an asset for the Indian team in the limited-overs format. Dhoni added another feather to his cap as he bestowed with the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, by president Ram Nath Kovind yesterday.

And upon his return to Chennai Super Kings, head coach Stephen Fleming revealed that the IPL winning captain looked set to get a promotion up the CSK batting order ahead of their opener versus Mumbai Indians in Mumbai on April 7.

"MS will bat relatively high. It's not necessarily a position with him, but a time that we may choose depending on what conditions we see. But he will definitely play a more prominent role as a batsman. We've picked (Kedar) Jadhav, (Ambati) Rayudu, (Ravindra) Jadeja & (Dwayne) Bravo so we can plan the middle phase. Looking at our side, there are a lot of multi-skilled players, and while not diminishing their main skills there is a lot of options that we can use," Fleming said during press interaction on Monday, reported ToI.

CSK have heavily relied on their spin bowlers in the past seasons, and are set to do the same this time around as well, with part-time spinners Kedar Jadhav, Suresh Raina, and Ravindra Jadeja being a big part of their strategy. But the likes of young Indian prospects in the form of Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar will also prove decisive, so do Fleming feels.

"In a training game, often you don't get up as much as you do for a real match. We saw a drop in standards. It was a good learning and that's part of a practice match. It's about just understanding where your players are at. They will be working hard in the next few days," said the 45-year old coach.

The addition of fast-bowling duo Mark Wood of England and Lung Ngidi of South Africa will prove as an added bonus to the side and will help make the team a more completed unit revealed Fleming.

"Wood and Ngidi have got some good pace. Shane Watson is a savvy new-ball bowler and we have several young Indian pacers. Ngidi bowled well against India and we feel his style of bowling would suit well for the plans we have got. Wood has got a skiddy trajectory which offers something challenging. We also got the options of using spin as well," he added.

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