Devon Conway- CSK's New Opening Star

CSK shelled out 16 Crores on Ben Stokes, who has been left on the sidelines due to Devon Conway’s consistency at the top.

Last Season, Devon Conway did start the season, but was in mainly because Moeen Ali was out of the first game due to some Visa Issues. He did make a return in the latter half of the tournament, and impressed with his game against spin instantly. He formed a good rapport with Gaikwad in his brief period at the top, but still could not be seen as a certain starter in 2023 with Ben Stokes in the Roster.

In Ben Stokes, CSK had a player who could offer a lot. They had a stable batter, bowler, and a future captaincy option as well.

Starting as a specialist batter though, Ben Stokes suffered a toe injury, leaving him out of the side, and by the time he came back there was no space left for him.

With Conway’s consistency, Ali’s spin in Chepauk, and Pathirana excelling in the death, Ben Stokes continued to warm the bench.

What has Conway done though to keep one of the best players in the World out of the side. He hasn’t played much Cricket in India, but he has shown quickly that he knows how to understand and adapt to conditions quickly.

Now, in his first full season, Devon Conway leads the run scoring charts for CSK, and has channeled his inner Mike Hussey at the top. At Chepauk, in particular, running between the wickets and finding the gaps is a very important skill. Mike Hussey had the ability to do the same with ease and now Devon Conway, with an incredible strike-rate against spin has shown that he can pierce gaps and push fielders with ease. With a minimum of 120 balls faced against spin, he is only behind Jaiswal, Sanju Samson and Suryakumar on strike-rate against spin.

Another similarity with Hussey has been his use of the sweep and reverse sweep. This has been an aspect in which Devon Conway has consistently been improving. Even before the IPL, when New Zealand toured India, Devon Conway consistently managed to sweep and reverse sweep Kuldeep Yadav, while occasionally throwing Yadav off his length with trips down the ground. The sweeps though are not his only option. He has shown, in the first game against the Knight Riders that he can pump the ball down the ground as well, an approach which just gets the job done.

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His game against spin has been on the rise, and he has done some unconventional training methods to get where he is. With a variety of shots, and with a lot of strike-rotation he knows how to get on the bowlers nerves and despite playing with a seemingly lower-strike rate, Devon Conway does make the task easier.

His partnership with Ruturaj Gaikwad is a key example. While Conway has been on the slower side, his ability to rotate strike has allowed Gaikwad to take on the bowlers effectively as well. The difference can be seen in the sixes he has hit this season, which higher in number than his usual count.

Against pace to, Devon Conway has done well to take the attack to the bowlers. He did not hesitate to go after the likes of Kagiso Rabada and Jofra Archer, and has been an absolute sponge at the top. With his form, CSK fans are being kept happy as they found another opener to fill the Hussey hole. At first they had Faf Du Plessis, come in and fill the Hussey sized hole, and when Faf Du Plessis was not bought back the fans were a touch heartbroken. Devon Conway though has more than filled the void and is doing an incredible job with his consistency at the top of the order.