Retaining Ashwin under 4 crores was tough, claims Stephen Fleming

CSK’s decision of not retaining Ashwin in this year’s IPL has been questioned by many fans. Ashwin who has 100 IPL wickets will now don a new jersey as Kings XI Punjab managed to buy the Chennai spinner for a whopping 7.6 crores. 

"We went into the auction knowing our cap for Ashwin will not be more than Rs. 4 crores. He (Ashwin) was a big part of CSK. But as proven it was going to be harder to retain him,” said Fleming 

CSK who used their RTM cards for Dwayne Bravo and Faf  Du Plessis will surely miss Ashwin in this year’s IPL. Not only did Ashwin take 100 wickets in his IPL career but also he is ranked 10th on the list of highest wicket-taking bowlers in IPL

Instead of retaining Ashwin, CKS went on to buy Harbhajan Singh for 2 crores. 

"His bowling will support wider boundaries. He was outstanding last year. And with the combination of M.S. Dhoni and Suresh Raina, the Indian core is strong now adding to Bhajji's purchase," the former New Zealand skipper said.

CSK also managed to get their hands on Shane Watson which increased the number of all-rounders in their team to four.

"Our strategy is around all-rounders. Has been our strategy in the past. He had a very good BBL. His experience is important. We have been on the receiving end of Watson in the past seasons. One way of eliminating that is to get him on your side," said Fleming.

Though CSK has managed to have four all-rounders and just a single premier spinner in the form of Bhajji, they will surely miss Ashwin in the coming IPL seasons.

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