IPL: CSK's strongest Playing 11 if Conway and Ravindra miss the start of IPL 2025

Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra are likely to miss the start of IPL 2025 and in this article we will be taking a look at CSK's strongest playing 11 in the absence of the two Kiwi players.

The IPL is the tournament which brings the highest amount of excitement and entertainment each year and the upcoming 2025 edition of the tournament promises to be the same too. While players from across the globe look forward to participating in the competition every year, some players face certain issues due to which they don't get the chance to take part in the IPL. 

One such case is of the New Zealand based players. The New Zealand Men's team will be staying back in Pakistan post the conclusion of Champions Trophy 2025, which begins from the 19th of February and ends on the 9th of March. 

Between 16th March and 5th April, the Black Caps will be locking horns versus the Pakistani Men's National Cricket Team in a complete white-ball series and both teams will be playing a total of five T20 International matches and three One Day International contests versus each other. This is the reason why players like Rachin Ravindra and Devon Conway will most likely miss the initial phase of IPL 2025.

If the New Zealand Cricket Board refuses to allow the duo of Conway and Ravindra to take part in the first three weeks of the cash-rich T20 league, then the CSK team management will be forced to look for replacements.

The replacement for Devon Conway:

If opening batter Devon Conway ends up missing the initial phase of IPL 2025, the the CSK management might make veteran batter Rahul Tripathi open the inning alongside skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad. Tripathi's services were acquired by the five-time winners in the 2025 Mega-Auction for a price tag of 3.40 crore Indian rupees. If they decide to go ahead with this combination, then it will give them the flexibility to field overseas bowlers. 

Replacement for Rachin Ravindra:

Jamie Overton is most likely going to be the replacement for Rachin Ravindra. The English fast bowling all-rounder can play the role similar to the one of Ben Stokes. Sam Curran, also from England, is going to provide good company to Overton and together, these two can strengthen CSK's bowling and lower middle order. 

CSK's Strongest Playing 11 if Conway and Ravindra miss the start of IPL 2025

Ruturaj Gaikwad (Captain), Shivam Dube, Rahul Tripathi, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Hooda, Jamie Overton, Sam Curran, MS Dhoni (WK), Matheesha Pathirana, Ravichandran Ashwin and Anshul Kamboj

Impact Player: Noor Ahmed,Vijay Shankar

Even during the previous season of the IPL, a cricket series was played between Pakistan and New Zealand. At that time, a total of 9 New Zealand players skipped the series and played in the IPL. It's looking highly unlikely this time around that the New Zealand Cricket Board will grant the permission to their players to skip the bilateral series in favor of the IPL. 

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