Better prepared for final than previous outing: CSK head coach Fleming

AHMEDABAD: Chennai Super Kings head coach Stephen Fleming on Saturday said that the four-time winner is better prepared for the Indian Premier League final than any other time in the past, when conditions affected the team’s performance.

Speaking ahead of the clash against Gujarat Titans here on Sunday, Fleming said that CSK’s win-loss ratio in finals remained around 50 per cent because it built and prepared its squads keeping in mind the conditions and pitches at its home venue (MA Chidambaram Stadium). But, that is not the case anymore.

Fleming also said the team would be ready for any condition and that it has erred in reading pitches in the past. “We geared ourselves up so well for Chennai that we did struggle with conditions at times in away games, so the finals were always a little bit of a challenge,” Fleming said during the pre-match press conference.

“It is maybe due to the style of the game we created – a victim of being so good at home that we had to make adjustments when we went to a neutral venue.” Fleming said that CSK had been “a bit more rounded” this season.

“Because of that, going back to Chennai (for Qualifier 1), it was hard. I wanted to bowl [first] in the last qualifying game and batting proved to be the right call. MS [Dhoni] was the other way in the last game,” Fleming added.

“So, we are well off the mark in trying to get the conditions right. The team is rounded enough to put performances together. Come the final, we are not worried as to what conditions we get. There are two pitches to choose from now but we are not too worried. We are a lot better placed than what we had been in the past,” Fleming said.

Knowledge of ‘home’ conditions will help: Solanki

GT director Vikram Solanki said that the knowledge of ‘home’ conditions should hold the team in good stead. “We are definitely better for the experience for having played here, having played in the final (last year) here and having been successful in those big games. We are better for it,” Solanki said.

“It (CSK) has been a fabulous team for a good number of years now and we respect that. We are confident, what transpires on the day is what transpires on the day,” Solanki added.