CSK ponder over Dhoni's batting order, Delhi fret on Ashwin's shoulder niggle
Dubai: Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's much-awaited promotion in the batting order will be an area of interest when Chennai Super Kings strive to pick up pieces against a confident Delhi Capitals in their third IPL encounter on Friday.
The shock defeat against Rajasthan Royals on a batting belter at Sharjah could be primarily attributed to a poor show by their spinners along with a disastrous 20th over but the batsmen can't absolve themselves completely, especially Murali Vijay, Kedar Jadhav and the skipper himself.
Dhoni had come in to bat at number seven, promoting the likes of Sam Curran, Jadhav and Ruturaj Gaikwad ahead of himself but the ploy backfired badly leaving Faf du Plessis with too much work in too little time.
While his fans still swear by his six-hitting ability, a closer look would show that Dhoni is unable to change the gears against express pace and it was only when Tom Curran came with his medium fast, Dhoni launched an attack. That too when the match as a contest was over.
However on a big Dubai ground with bigger-sized boundaries, the skipper can rotate the strike better unlike Sharjah and also take those extra deliveries to settle down.
For Delhi Capitals, winning a cliffhanger right at the onset would have given them a lot of confidence even though Ravichandran Ashwin's probable absence after a shoulder injury could force them to reshuffle their bowling line-up.
Senior spinner Amit Mishra could be an option to partner Axar Patel in case Ashwin is unable to make it.
The cushion of bigger boundaries can always help a wrist spinner attack more by tossing the ball up.
Another aspect will be pacer Mohit Sharma's performance. While Mohit got KL Rahul at the beginning but his loose deliveries at the back-end made things difficult for the Capitals even as Kagiso Rabada bowled tightly at one end.
Against a side like CSK which revels in attacking the last 10 overs, the Capitals might like to try Harshal Patel, who is also a handy batsman at any number having opened in domestic cricket.
Anrich Nortje in his first IPL game wasn't bad but left-armer Daniel Sams could create those awkward angles that batsmen dislike.
Shimron Hetmyer is likely to get one more chance unless Ricky Ponting wants to bring in some stability in the form of Alex Carey.
Talking of big hitters, Delhi has one too many in their line-up including Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, skipper Shreyas Iyer and last match's hero Marcus Stoinis, who would like to throw up an open challenge for Piyush Chawla and Ravindra Jadeja, who had a forgettable last outing.
Teams (from): Chennai Super Kings: Chennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (captain, wk), M Vijay, Ambati Rayudu, Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Kedar Jadhav, Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Lungi Ngidi, Deepak Chahar, Piyush Chawla, Imran Tahir, Mitchell Santner, Josh Hazlewood, Shardul Thakur, Sam Curran, N Jagadeesan, KM Asif, Monu Kumar, R Sai Kishore, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Karn Sharma.
Delhi Capitals: Shreyas Iyer (c), Ravichandran Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Shimron Hetmyer, Kagiso Rabada, Ajinkya Rahane, Amit Mishra, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishant Sharma, Axar Patel, Sandeep Lamichhane, Keemo Paul, Daniel Sams, Mohit Sharma, Anrich Nortje, Alex Carey (wk), Avesh Khan, Tushar Deshpande, Harshal Patel, Marcus Stoinis, Lalit Yadav.
Match begins at 7.30 pm IST.
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India harbouring big and bold dreams in space sector: Shubhanshu Shukla
Kolkata (PTI): Air Force Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla, the first Indian astronaut to go to the International Space Station, on Wednesday said the country is harbouring “big and bold dreams”, foraying into human spaceflight after a hiatus of 41 years.
Shukla was the first Indian to visit the International Space Station as part of the Axiom-4 mission. He returned to India from the US on August 17, 2025, after the 18-day mission.
The space is a “great place to be”, marked by deep peace and an “amazing view” that becomes more captivating with time, he said, interacting with schoolchildren at an event organised by the Indian Centre for Space Physics here.
“The longer you stay, the more you enjoy it,” Shukla said, adding on a lighter note that he “actually kind of did not want to come back”.
Shukla said the hands-on experience in space was very different from what he had learnt during training.
He said the future of India’s space science was “very bright”, with the country harbouring “very big and bold dreams”.
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Shukla described his ISS flight, undertaken with support from the US, as a crucial “stepping stone” towards realising India’s ‘Vision Gaganyaan’.
“The experience gained is a national asset. It is already being used by internal committees and design teams to ensure ongoing missions are on the right track,” he said.
Shukla said the country’s space ambitions include the Gaganyaan human spaceflight programme, the Bharatiya Station (India’s own space station), and eventually a human landing on the Moon.
While the Moon mission is targeted for 2040, he said these projects are already in the pipeline, and the field will evolve at a “very rapid pace” over the next 10-20 years.
He told the students that though these targets are challenging, they are “achievable by people like you”, urging them to take ownership of India’s aspirations.
The sector will generate “a lot of employment opportunities” as India expands its human spaceflight capabilities, he noted.
Echoing the iconic words of India’s first astronaut Rakesh Sharma, Shukla said that from orbit, “India is still the best in the world”.
Shukla also asserted that the achievement was not his alone, but that of the entire country.
“The youth of India are extremely talented. They must stay focused, remain curious and work hard. It is their responsibility to help build a developed India by 2047,” he said.
Highlighting a shift from Sharma’s era, Shukla said India is now developing a full-fledged astronaut ecosystem.
With Gaganyaan and future missions, children in India will be able to not only dream of becoming astronauts, but also achieving it within the country, he said.
“Space missions help a village kid believe he can go to space someday. When you send one person to space, you lift million hopes. That is why such programmes must continue... The sky is not the limit,” Shukla said.
“Scientists must prepare for systems that will last 20-30 years, while ensuring they can integrate technologies that will emerge a decade from now,” he said.
Shukla added that he looked forward to more space missions, and was keen to undertake a space walk, which will require him to "train for another two years".
