"The scale is tilted towards Chennai" - Aakash Chopra on CSK's IPL 2023 clash vs Delhi Capitals

Aakash Chopra reckons the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are the favorites heading into their IPL 2023 clash against the Delhi Capitals (DC).

The two sides will lock horns at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi in the afternoon game on Saturday, May 20. A win for MS Dhoni and Co. will guarantee them a playoff berth and could even secure them a place in Qualifier 1 based on the result of the Lucknow Super Giants-Kolkata Knight Riders clash later in the day.

While previewing the game in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that the Chennai Super Kings should come up trumps. However, he also highlighted their travails against spin in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League, observing:

"The scale is tilted towards Chennai. It is an afternoon game. The ball turned a lot in the last match that was played here. Prabhsimran Singh scored a century but everyone else was struggling. An uncomfortable fact is that Chennai are second among the teams to lose the most wickets against spin this year."

The former Indian opener pointed out that the four-time champions have had contrasting fortunes in the bowling and batting departments on spin-friendly surfaces, elaborating:

"Spin bowling is not their problem at all but the batting has struggled a little. When the ball has come extremely slow off the surface, we have even seen Devon Conway getting troubled. We have seen Ruturaj Gaikwad also getting troubled. His season started on a high but it has plateaued slightly."

Chopra feels most CSK batters might not be at home on the turning track in Delhi, stating:

"Ajinkya Rahane has scored a lot of runs against Delhi but this pitch might not suit him if it is a typical Delhi surface. Shivam Dube plays well. Moeen Ali hasn't scored runs at all. Then Ravindra Jadeja and MS Dhoni, it has been a slight struggle against spin."

Devon Conway (498), Ruturaj Gaikwad (425) and Shivam Dube (363) are CSK's top three run-getters in IPL 2023. While Dube has brought his big-hitting game to the fore even on turning tracks, the two openers have been found slightly wanting at times.

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"The batting is extremely overseas dependent" - Aakash Chopra on Delhi Capitals' issue against CSK

Rilee Rossouw was DC's top-scorer in their last game against CSK. [P/C: iplt20.com]

While observing that Prithvi Shaw is a welcome addition to the Delhi Capitals' lineup, Aakash Chopra expects their overseas-heavy batting to struggle against spin, saying:

"Prithvi Shaw is a good addition because they will get a player who can play spin. David Warner, Phil Salt, Rilee Rossouw and Mitchell Marsh, if he plays, the batting is extremely overseas dependent which means the chances of getting stuck against spin increase that much."

Chopra pointed out that CSK have a formidable spin-bowling lineup in Maheesh Theekshana, Moeen Ali and Ravindra Jadeja. He added that they also have decent seamers in the form of Deepak Chahar and Matheesha Pathirana, with Tushar Deshpande as the sixth bowling option.