Reports | Chances of Moeen Ali playing in season opener appear remote as he is yet to secure India visa
According to a report by ESPNCricinfo, the chances of Moeen Ali playing in the season opener against Kolkata Knight Riders are very less as he is yet to secure an Indian visa. Moeen Ali was retained by the franchise before auction and will play a vital role for the team with his all-round skills.
IPL 2022 is all set to start from March 26 and the opening match of the tournament will see a matchup between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). CSK had retained Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, Moeen Ali and Ruturaj Gaikwad. CSK has now suffered a blow to their campaign.Â
According to a report by ESPNCricinfo, CSK all-rounder Moeen Ali is yet to receive his India visa and he might miss the season opener.Â
"It is learned that Moeen would need to arrive in Mumbai by Wednesday to stand a chance of playing his team's first match against 2021 runners-up Knight Riders," a report in 'ESPNcricinfo' stated.
"Considering that Moeen would need to undergo the mandatory three-day quarantine to enter the IPL bio-secure environment, Super Kings' management has accepted that the chances of him playing the opening match appear remote," the report added.
Moeen scored 357 runs from 15 innings and six wickets from 15 games with his off-spin last year. The report also stated that Devon Conway might play the match if England all-rounder misses out. It also added that the team will miss his off-spin as it can be handy against left-handers: Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, and Sunil Narine.
"The Super Kings will likely feel the pinch in their first match, considering Moeen's off spin would have been handy against Knight Riders' trio of left-handers: Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana and Sunil Narine," it read.