Mr. IPL Suresh Raina is all set to participate in the upcoming IPL 2023 season not as a player but as a member of the Hindi commentary team. Raina along with former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has been roped by Star Sports for their Hindi commentary team, a report states.
Suresh Raina Set to Join IPL Hindi Commentary Team
It was shocking for his fans when Chennai Super Kings or any of the other 9 teams didn’t pick him at the IPL 2023 mega auction last month. There was plenty of speculation on social media that Raina may replace Jason Roy at the Gujarat Titans but even that didn’t materialise.
As per sources, it has been learned that Shastri is taking rehearsals in Hindi before he switches language on air. The former India coach didn’t comment since the 2017 Champions Trophy.
“You all know that Raina won’t be a part of the IPL this time but we somehow wanted to link him with the tournament. He has a massive fan following and there is a reason why he is known as Mr. IPL. As for Shastri, he was part of the Star Sports English commentary team. But he didn’t comment after the final of Champions Trophy in 2017 as he became India’s head coach,” an IPL source said while speaking to Dainik Jagran newspaper.
Suresh Raina went unsold in the IPL 2023 Mega Auctions in February as for the first since the inception of the league, ‘Mr. IPL’ won’t be a part of any team of the league. He is the 4th highest run-getter in the history of the IPL and has scored 5528 runs in 205 matches, which includes one century and 39 half-centuries and have also scalped 25 wickets during that span of time.
Former India coach, Ravi Shastri who was replaced by Rahul Dravid for the post after the 2023 T20 World Cup will be taking up Hindi commentary, an unusual field for the 1983 World Cup-winning player, who has been one of the iconic and soothing voices in cricket commentary in English.
IPL Hindi Commentary Team – Full List
- Aakash Chopra
- Irfan Pathan
- Gautam Gambhir
- Parthiv Patel
- Nikhil Chopra
- Tanya Purohit
- Kiran More
- Jatin Sapru
- Suren Sundaram
- Suresh Raina
- Ravi Shastri
